So...this happened. It started out as a little plot-bunny then it morphed into a plot...hippo? I don't know. But standard manga/comic disclaimers apply! Hope you like it! :)
He was bored as hell.
Sasuke Uchiha has been waiting inside his shiny, new, sports car—black and all—for about half an hour already. He supposes he could leave the parking lot and go back to join his friends inside the club, but the loud music coupled with too-forward girls and people screaming their lungs out with every beat that oozed from the speakers were not appealing to him at the moment. He had a long day tomorrow and was only forced to go out tonight so he can play 'designated driver' to his friends.
Inhaling the soothing leathery interior of his car as he gazed at the stars from behind the windshield, he remembered Naruto's promise of leaving him alone for a whole week. A week without Naruto barging in his office or dropping by unannounced at his apartment will definitely ensure a more relaxed and focused Sasuke, who needed to work on an important project that will ensure the perfect score he has been working to attain for the past semester.
Since he began his design class a few months ago, it seemed that his instructor refused to give him all the points. There were always two or three point deductions on the minutest details which Sasuke always found debatable. Every time he would try to argue about these aspects with the elderly professor, he was always told to return his work with a list of his arguments. Every time, Sasuke went home and typed a long list of arguments as to why he deserved the points back. He would submit his work for a re-grade the very next day. And the day after that, Sasuke picks up his re-graded work, with the same score (sometimes even lower) and at least a two-page typed explanation of why the marks he received were justified, complete with his professor's initials at the bottom of the last page, as if this was the final decision. He would read the comments and reasoning behind it all and often found himself annoyed, because every little sentence made sense. Every point lost was justified neatly and orderly.
He didn't even know why he bothered to apply for re-grades when this happened every single time. But Sasuke understands that stubbornness is one of his characteristics, in addition to being a perfectionist. Every time he would read the multi-paged explanation of why he received a 95-99 instead of 100 on what his previous professors would consider a perfectly perfect project, he gets fired up to work harder and prove that the work he produced simply equate to perfection. He swore that this most recent project will be testimony to the praises he's heard from previous instructors alike. He will make this class his bitch.
A soft sound broke his reverie.
He followed the source of this noise and found it—leaning on the hood of his shiny, new, sports car. A random woman decided to prop herself up on the hood of his car, right in front of the passenger seat. Brows puckering in annoyance, Sasuke quickly pressed a button to roll down the passenger seat's window.
"Hey," he called out.
No response.
"Hey, woman," he called out louder.
Still no response. He watched as the woman placed both her hands on the car and swiftly lifted herself to sit on the hood. Sasuke almost balked.
"Hey, idiot! Get off my car, now!"
That seemed to catch her attention as she quickly jumped down. She had to lay her hand back on the hood to keep balance as her other hand clutched on her chest. He saw her sway for a few seconds. Great, she's drunk, he thought. Sasuke quickly pushed a button to roll up the same window before getting out of the car.
"Are you crazy? You gave me such a fright!" the woman yelled.
"I wasn't the one sitting on the hood of a stranger's car," came Sasuke's reply. It only took four long strides to reach his car-assailant.
He was ready to spit out synonyms to the word 'idiot' but was rendered speechless by the most stunning green eyes he had ever seen. It was dark at the parking lot, but the moon, combined with a lamp post a few cars down provided enough luminescence for people to see. Sasuke didn't think he needed the lamp post to see how the irises of this woman shone brightly. There was something hypnotizing about them.
"Someone hasn't gotten laid in a while."
He snapped back in focus. The woman's reply finally registered in his mind and he almost wanted to laugh at her remark. "That will never be a problem for me," he returned. Sasuke briefly wondered why he had to defend himself. It seemed that under her scrutinizing viridian gaze, he just had to. He stepped closer to her and executed his signature smirk.
She scoffed and looked away from him. He thought he heard her mutter arrogant under her breath.
"Look, why don't you just find another car? I really don't care. Just leave mine alone."
The girl rolled her eyes and sighed. "Whatever," she said. But instead of stepping away from his vehicle, Sasuke noticed that she lifted her hand, the one that was on her chest, and laid it back on the hood of his car. "It's just a car, you know," she commented. She lifted a brow in challenge and stared at him. "It's nice, but it's not all that. My car is totally better."
He almost couldn't believe her.
He stepped closer and leaned into her. His head was now a few inches away from hers. She stayed still for a few seconds before inching her head away.
"I'm going to ask you one more time," Sasuke whispered slowly. "Get off my car."
Her eyes narrowed for a fraction. And then she slowly inched her face closer to his. Sasuke noticed her eyes flicker to his lips before resting them back on his orbs. He took note of how she slowly licked her pink lips before opening her mouth. His heart beat quickened in pace without his approval.
"Fine," she murmured. And just when he didn't think it was possible, she leaned in much closer—this time, their lips millimeters apart. He felt hands on his chest, then a small pressure.
And then he found himself backpedaling as she lightly pushed him to make room. She bent over to grab a purse from the floor. Swallowing rather thickly, Sasuke watched the woman walk—no—saunter away, without looking back. His gaze found the tall silver heels she was wearing, and how they made her legs run a mile long. He took note of the sensuous pace her hips took as she walked farther and farther away from him and his car. She was now passing by a lamp, and he noticed the strange color of her hair. Pink. Bright and soft-looking, which cascaded down to the middle of her back in curls. He wondered if it was a wig. For a brief second, he almost wanted to call her back to find out.
And then he cleared his throat—and effectively, his mind.
A few strides and he found himself opening his car door. He was about to step inside when he heard a faint wolf-whistle. Followed by another one. And another.
He expelled a breath. He knew the cause of these whistles.
Sasuke closed his car door and started walking towards the direction the girl went.
000
"Baby, baby. Where you headed tonight? I can take you home."
"Honey, don't listen to him. Come with me. I'm a lot of fun and I'm sure you'll enjoy that."
"Aw, sweetheart, you don't want these two idiots. Why don't I take you out for a bite to eat instead? And then maybe we can find something else to do after."
Sasuke rolled his eyes as he heard these pick-up lines. He jogged for a few seconds and was now only a few feet away from three swaying, drunk men and the woman with pink hair. A large truck and a dysfunctional lamp hid his presence from everyone.
"I can find my way home, You don't look fun, and I'm not hungry," came her reply to all three. She seemed unfazed by their approach as she continued walking away. Sasuke didn't like the way the men looked at each other, nodded their heads, and then took swaying steps to follow her.
He finally stepped away from where he was standing and took long strides to catch up to them.
"Stop following me, idiots," she barked. The woman stopped walking, turned around, and faced the men. One of the guys walked closer to her and was about to grab her arm when Sasuke found himself (loudly and clearly) saying, "Hey green eyes, come here."
Her arm was in mid-air; hand palm-up and ready for its descent on the nearest man's cheek. She stopped half-way after hearing Sasuke's call. The girl made eye contact with him and raised both her brows before setting her arm back down.
Sasuke walked forward and made eye contact with each man, assessing and calculating the task, until he was but a foot away from her.
"Did you miss me?" she asked. She turned to him and cocked her head to the side, mouth quirked in an amused smile.
He caught the smile before it escaped his lips. "In your dreams," he quipped.
"You're the one who yelled desperately to come here, but then you ended up running towards me in the end," she supplied. In a very serious tone.
"You're exaggerating by just a bit," Sasuke said. Normally, any task that required him to go out of his way annoyed the hell out of him. Instead of sitting in his car and thinking about ways to refine his project, he is now standing in the parking lot, rushing to a woman's 'rescue'. He should be annoyed as hell right now. Instead, a bubble of amusement settled in his chest.
"Hey, hey, get in line, you punk! I saw her first"
"Yeah, kid! Go away! Wait….no. I saw her first!"
"No, you dumbasses. I spotted her before either of you did!"
A punch was thrown, and before Sasuke knew it, a brawl was happening right in front of him. The three drunk men were throwing punches at each other, screaming profanities as one screamed that He definitely saw her first to another.
Before he became involved in such an idiotic commotion, Sasuke reached for the girl's hand and tugged her back to the direction of his car.
Halfway from where they were to where they're headed, she stopped walking. He turned around and watched as she tugged her hand away from him.
"I practice martial arts," she simply said.
Her comment confused him for a moment until she supplied it with, "I could have kicked all of their asses. Plus yours."
Sasuke was now looking at the smug look on her face. They were directly under another one of those parking lot lamps, which allowed him to assess her closely. The green orbs are still as vibrant as they were the first time he laid eyes on them. His gaze wandered her small face; smooth and free of any blemishes. He didn't know much about make-up, but understood that she wore just the right amount—thankfully, her face wasn't packed with powder and her eyes are lined artfully and subtly. His gaze slid lower to the short, black strapless dress that hugged her body. At the conclusion of this assessment, he agreed that he liked the view. Shifting his eyes back to the woman's face, he noticed that she was in the middle of her own little assessment.
This time, he didn't stop it. He laughed for a few seconds and then let it gradually fade, settling for an amused smile. Sasuke can't remember the last time he laughed like that.
This seemed to break her inspection. He watched as she lifted her eyes from his…navel area, possibly lower…back to his face.
"What?" she asked, innocently.
"Nothing," he replied. "You can go back to them if you want, I won't stop you," he amended.
She seemed to consider this thoughtfully, her brows furrowed in concentration. A smile played on her lips as she appeared to reach a conclusion. The woman took small steps forward and as she passed by Sasuke, she said, "Liaaaar," in a singsong voice.
Sasuke watched her walk away from him, once again, and towards his car. She reclaimed her previous spot on the hood.
He shook his head and walked the same direction. When he reached his car, he opened the passenger's car door.
000
"Really? I think it would look better with floor to ceiling windows."
Sasuke found himself listening to how this woman would re-construct the club. It was a random subject she had brought up, and before he could throw in his detailed suggestions, she blurted some of her own.
She is currently staring at the club and drawing imaginary lines with her forefinger as she closed one eye in concentration. Briefly, he wondered if she had taken several architecture classes. It was dismissed the moment she used non-technical adjectives such as too ugly, too fat, too weird and more. Still, he was slightly amazed at how he could follow her comments and suggestions. Some made sense, and some were clearly products of her too-abstract mind.
They were currently in his car, with the top down. The moment he sat down in his seat, she reached for a button that made the top of his car contract and recline. "So we can see the moon," she reasoned. To which he replied, "Welcome to my car. Make yourself comfortable." Sarcastically, of course. She seemed to have caught this tone because she stared at him, long and hard, before laughing. She looked genuinely amused and somehow, he felt pleased that he was the cause of it. At that moment, Sasuke thought that if she decided to rest her feet on the dashboard, he wouldn't have minded at all.
"Do you like where you are right now?" she asked. Putting her hand back on her lap, she reclined back into the seat and stared at the starry sky.
His head moved to look at her. "You're fishing for compliments," he commented.
She met his gaze. "I didn't mean this, silly. I know you're enjoying my company." She paused. And then, "I'm talking about life. Do you like where you are now? And where you're headed?"
Sasuke returned his eyes to the night sky. Lately, he's been contemplating a lot about what he wants to do after graduation. He could either take over his father's business or pursue other options.
Before he could stop, he found himself answering her honestly. "I don't know." His mouth was set on a grim line as he truly contemplated her question. He's had endless debates with his older brother about this topic, and Sasuke always refused to admit that he was still contemplating various options. Several moments had passed before he added, "You're arrogant," in a light tone.
The girl giggled.
"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I don't know where I'm headed either, but we're bound to find out somehow, right?"
At this, he simply nodded.
Their conversation continued. Sasuke realized that they had covered a myriad of subjects—ranging from anything thought-provoking to something trivial. With every witty remark he threw, she answered with a sarcastic one. With every deep thought she explained, he found himself agreeing and adding his own thoughts.
It was a conversation. A flowing one at that. And he realized that he enjoyed every moment of it.
Some moments, they would just sit in silence and stare at the sky.
And then at one point, he found himself arguing about why Bruce Wayne is better than Tony Stark. She was in the middle of detailing every single gadget Iron Man owns when he was again mesmerized by what he saw.
She looked so damn passionate about her choice, her explanations as to why her superhero 'would kick his superhero's ass.' Her eyes took a deep shade of green, her brows furrowed in complete concentration, her moist, pink lips quickly opening and closing as she articulately rattled off several scenarios where Batman would lose. Her arms were waving up and down in description, effectively pulling her dress a few ways down.
He wondered if she could look just as passionate doing something else.
"—I mean, come on. Batman can't even hide. Iron Man would activate his night vision and the boom! your super hero is toa—"
He couldn't stop himself. Wouldn't. Sasuke leaned over to slant his lips over hers. The woman stilled for a second before releasing a soft moan and lifting her hands to his hair. He snaked one of his arms around her waist as his hand cupped her face. They kissed and maneuvered until somehow, she ended up on top of him, on the reclined driver's seat. Sasuke sucked and licked on her bottom lip until she opened and allowed him to explore her mouth with his tongue. His hands gripped her waist then roamed her back, tracing lines up and down her spine.
She gasped into his mouth and pulled back. A few centimeters apart, Sasuke observed the glazed-look on her eyes. Her attention was solely on him. One of her hands slowly played with his hair before tracing random lines on his face. She traced soothing lines on his forehead, down to his nose, and finally to his lips. He opened his eyes, not realizing they had closed in the first place. She had an amused look on her face before closing the gap and lightly pecking him with a kiss.
"This doesn't mean you win, you know," she murmured against his lips before applying more pressure and deepening it. Sasuke could only growl. He answered her passionate kiss with his own as his hand roamed all over her body. His mouth left her lips to explore her neck and trailed outwards to her shoulder before kissing his way back up to her ear. He took one earlobe into his mouth—she shuddered and moaned—and he licked it deftly. He heard the clinking sound made when his teeth clashed with the earring she was wearing. Her hands were in the middle of unbuttoning his shirt when they were disturbed with a vibration from her purse.
"Shit," she managed to say, while breathing hard. She quickly removed her hands from under his shirt, lifted herself off his lap and settled for the passenger's seat. Sasuke heard her answer her phone.
"She is? Where are you now?! Ugh, she would do that! You're lucky I haven't left! Alright, I'll be there right away!"
She returned the phone in her purse and glanced back at him. Still breathing hard, she said, "I've got to go. Thank you…?"
His mind still in a daze, Sasuke managed to supply her with, "Batman."
She laughed. "Thank you, Batman. I…I have to go." She leaned closer to him, ready to give him a kiss, but pulled back at the last second. "Bad idea," she mumbled.
And then he watched as she opened his car door and hurriedly walked away.
Sasuke sat still for a few minutes, reeling from what had just happened. He ran his fingers through his hair in disbelief…and then opened his mouth. He swirled his tongue around until an object was brought to his front teeth. He retrieved it with his fingers.
He found himself staring at a small diamond earring.
And then he cursed. Why the hell did he say Batman instead of his own name?
000
A few more minutes had passed until he heard his friends talking loudly amongst themselves.
"Oi, Teme. You shoulda stayed at the club! There was a random girl fight! Over Shikamaru over here! Two hot blondes! Holy shit, I think I even saw a nipp—"
"Naruto," came a lazy drawl.
"Whatever, Shikamaru. You saw it too! You totally enjoyed it! Eh? Sasuke? Oi, Sasuke! Focus!"
Sasuke barely heard his friend. He was motioning his head up and down signaling that he heard him, but eyes were focused on the small compartment on his dashboard, where he placed the earring just as his friends arrived.
000
Two weeks later found Sasuke sitting in the design lecture hall with his classmates, waiting for his professor to return their graded projects. Sasuke poured in all his time—worked on it day and night—for a week straight. He felt relieved and excited (though he'd never show it) when he submitted his work.
Now, he was sitting amidst a sea of 59 other students, listening to the nervous chatter of others, some cursing the strict grading system, others praying that they earn a passing grade.
A door opened and everyone's attention snapped to the person who entered the room.
Realizing that it wasn't the professor, others released a breathy sigh of relief and continued their conversations. Sasuke, on the other hand, stilled.
Pink.
He saw pink.
Right there, in front of the lecture hall, was his green-eyed, pink-haired, car-assaulting, Iron Man-loving girl. She was busy setting a stack of folders on one of the desks. After arranging everything in a neat pile, she sat on the edge of the desk, produced her phone out, and started fiddling with it. She was wearing jeans and a simple white shirt.
The same woman who has been flooding his mind for the past two weeks. Incessantly.
Sasuke was about to stand from his seat when the door opened once again. Everyone else in the room held their breaths as their professor strode into the hall with confident, measured strides. The elderly man stopped next to the girl, who pocketed her phone away and settled for a smile. They engaged in a small conversation. A minute and two had passed, and then Sasuke watched as the girl jumped down from the desk and walked out of the classroom.
Torn between rushing after her and waiting for his project, Sasuke ultimately decided on the latter. He settled back in his seat and waited in agitation for his name to be called.
To his dismay, the professor decided to make a little speech before handing the graded projects back. Sasuke's attention was divided between the front of the lecture hall and the door that lead outside. Until a specific comment caught his attention altogether.
"As you all know, you are allowed one re-grade for this project. The same guidelines apply, but instead of writing down your reasons, I would like it if you could come into my office and discuss it with me as well as my teaching assistant. I might have not mentioned it before, but from the beginning of the semester and until now, some of the grading for the projects in this class were done by a teaching assistant, who took this course previously and earned the highest marks. I have been busy with research proposals lately and enlisted her help with our class. Now, you may raise questions about her expertise, but I can assure you that she consulted me as she worked on grading and re-grading your assignments, and you all have seen the amount of detail she has provided to explain why you deserved the grades that you received..."
It did not take long for gears to grind in Sasuke's head. The conclusion left him...dumbfounded.
After a few minutes, the professor finally launched into a new lecture, explaining that he will return the projects back at the end of the class so that everyone would pay attention to him.
000
An hour and fifteen minutes later, the professor finally finished his lecture and began to return graded projects.
When Sasuke's name was called out, it took some of his willpower not to bolt towards the front of the hall. He made a steady approach to the professor and reached for the folder that was extended to him. Before the older man relinquished his old of the report, Sasuke heard him say, "Congratulations," with a twinkle in his eyes.
Sasuke quickly flipped the cover over and spotted *100*, neatly written in red ink. At the bottom were a few lines, neatly written in blue:
Congratulations, Mr. Uchiha. This was very well planned and executed! I would very much like to meet with you and discuss this project further. I believe this design is aggressive enough to be entered in this year's competition. Shoot me an e-mail. Hope to hear from you soon!– S.H.
"S.H.," Sasuke managed to say.
"Ah, that is probably why you and your classmates were confused. But I do not see the difference. Saito Hachiban…Sakura Haruno…she consulted me with each grading and re-grading! Regardless, this is the highest mark anyone has received in this class on a project, since Haruno. You should definitely consider contacting her about competition. I believe that you can both end up with the winning design. Here is her e-mail address."
000
Sasuke was currently in deep thought. He now had the task of constructing an e-mail so he could meet with Sakura Haruno. To discuss his project…amongst other things. He dodged people and maneuvered though several vehicles until he finally arrived next to his own. He bent his head down and reached into his pocket for his keys, and then heard the familiar sound his car made when it is being unlocked remotely. Only, he hadn't pressed the button yet.
Confused, he looked up.
And saw that the car parked in front of his was of the same model and make, but in red. A shiny, new, red convertible was parked right in front of his car. And a certain pink-haired woman was walking towards it, arm out and ready to unlock the door.
He could almost laugh. Briefly, he remembered how the same woman declared that her car is better than his.
He watched her settle into the driver's seat before depositing her bag on the passenger's. She started the car and gradually looked forward, to where he was standing.
Sasuke saw her brows pucker in confusion, and then rise in shock. He watched her watch him walk towards her.
A few moments later and he heard her rolling down her window.
"Hey," she softly called out. "Get off my car."
Sasuke smirked and obliged. He eased his weight off the hood of her car as she turned the engine off and stepped outside.
They found each other face to face, at a parking lot, in broad daylight, two weeks later.
Her eyes were locked on the folder he was holding in his right hand. A smile played on her lips, as if another revelation was unveiled. He thought he heard her mumble, "unbelievable."
"I thought Batman's alias was Bruce Wayne," she inquired, as she looked back at him.
He took note of how her eyes shone differently under the sun. Phenomenally bright and vivid.
"That's a common misconception," he answered. "Only pink-haired, green-eyed, car-assailing, Iron Man-loving women know that his real identity lies in Sasuke Uchiha."
At this, she laughed. "What's so great about Batman anyway?"
He grabbed her hand and led her to his car. The shiny, new, black convertible at the other side of her shiny, new, red convertible.
"He finds things," he simply said, before letting go of her hand to unlock his vehicle. He retrieved something from inside before closing the door.
He turned around and saw the confused look on her face. Sasuke reached for her hand and dropped something onto her palm.
"My earring! Oh my—I've been looking for this for days!" she whipped her head from the diamond stud in her palm to his face, back to the earring, then back to his face—all in disbelief. She stepped closer to him and gazed up into his eyes. "Where did you find it?"
With his signature Sasuke-smirk, he leaned down until his lips were next to her ear.
"In my mouth."
Ta-da! Hope you enjoyed reading it! I had so much fun writing this with the dumbest smile on my face. As usual, I'd very much love your input! :)