"I want to hear your heart laugh in happiness."
He was tired.
The young Uchiha eyed the village as he browsed around, looking for something interesting to do. It was the first time he ended training early. From eight in the morning to seven at night, he would only train and eat.
But eventually, he got bored and wanted to see what other things life had to offer.
As he walked around, Sasuke noticed things he had never noticed before in his eighteen years of living in Konoha.
How the gravel covering the ground were a dull shade of grey. His eyes caught the grass peeking on the outside of the road, adding a brilliant green, contrasting the grey.
"Babe, what's this for?" He looked up to see a couple giggling together as they admired their couple rings together.
"What's wrong with loving you?" The boy said and pecked his girlfriend's lips.
It always fascinated Sasuke how love worked. Sure he had a couple girlfriends in the past, but they never worked out the way he wanted it. They always seemed just liked another girl in his life, nothing special at all.
For some reason, he wanted to just go home and call it a day.
'Well, today's not the day…' The raven haired man sighed, wondering if he would find something tomorrow that would capture his attention even for a second.
Music blared from the ear buds, letting Sasuke shut out everything around him. It was almost like a sanctuary for him. He didn't have to worry about impressing anyone or being assigned to a mission soon. Even for a second, it provided him with the relief he needed to keep his sanity.
What did he think he needed in his life?
Happiness? Maybe someone to talk to.
Sure he had friends but Sasuke felt like something was missing. It wouldn't have bothered him if it didn't make him feel like a huge chunk of his life was missing.
Even though he had stopped training early, he was still exhausted. Training had gotten more and more tiring and he didn't want to admit it, but he knew it was because it wasn't enjoyable anymore.
Not wanting to return to the solitude of his house so soon, he sat down on a bench and bent his head back. The sun was setting beautifully, its' rays engulfing the earth completely.
'What to do, what to do…'
As he continued to see how the orange flash covered everything in sight, he felt a presence next to him he didn't notice before.
Beautiful strands of blue hair fell onto her shoulder flawlessly, shining with the sun's beams. Her almond brown eyes glowed with life as they curved when she smiled. Sasuke didn't notice he was staring right back at her until she looked away, feeling a little uncomfortable.
"Oh, sorry." He apologized and bowed a little as he scooted away from her. "I didn't notice you there before."
When she didn't respond, his onyx eyes glanced over in curiosity.
The grin on her face never left as she eyed the man.
"…Are you new here? I don't think I've seen you around." Making small talk wasn't his thing, but something about this girl interested him.
The blue haired girl shook her head and her eyes shifted their attention to something else. Sasuke lifted a brow and wondered what had caught her attention.
Then a new song started to blast from his ear buds.
"Do you...Want to listen?" He handed her one of the ear buds and she looked down to it, not knowing what to do.
But she took it into her hands anyway and eyed it before plugging it into her ears. The raven haired man squinted at the girl as her smile grew even brighter.
She seemed lively as she swung her feet back and forth, hitting the ground occasionally.
"Does it make you that happy?" Even though he didn't realize it, being with this girl made him smile too. It was almost as if her cheerfulness was being spread through the air.
She didn't say anything but nodded, showing him she was overjoyed.
The two of them watched the sun slowly disappear in a comfortable silence. When the young Uchiha realized he should have been home by now, he just chuckled, wondering why this girl caught his interest.
Then he wondered why she was so quiet.
"Not to be rude..." His tone was soft and friendly, knowing that it might be a touchy subject. "But do you not talk?"
The song ended with the last few keys of piano. When she smiled, he could see tears swimming in her eyes, threatening to fall.
"Oh, sorry, I didn't..."
But he paused when he heard her giggle. It was small and soft, but it was also enough to shock Sasuke. The sweet sound rang in his ear, giving him a hint of how much warmer her voice might be.
"No, I talk." Sasuke's jaw slowly dropped in astonishment. When she talked, she seemed a little hesitant, but that didn't bother him at all.
"Then you didn't talk to me on purpose?" He smirked when her smile fell and started to shake her head quickly.
"No it's just…" His onyx eyes hardened when he heard the pain in her voice. "That was the first time I ever heard a song."
The two sat on the wooden bench, not knowing what to say to each other. The blue haired girl brushed her feet against the dirt shyly as the raven haired man tried to read the mysterious girl in front of him.
"I got cochlear implants today." Just the thought of it made the girl smile happily.
"Today?" Sasuke was surprised that this girl had been deaf for so long. "Then how do you know how to talk?"
"I became deaf when I was seven, so I remember how to talk a little." Her presence alone was serene and held a sense of peace in it. "Since I knew the alphabet, it wasn't hard to teach myself new words."
Hardship? That's probably the best word that crossed Sasuke's mind as he listened to her life story.
"…That's amazing." At that, she turned and grinned, leaving Sasuke breathless.
"I thought I would have to approach people first, but you proved me wrong." The wind started to pick up its speed as the day slowly grew older.
The young Uchiha chuckled. "I'm Sasuke."
"Hikari." Her voice was just above a whisper. "Sasuke, your voice is soothing."
'Run.' His mind told him, but that was only because of the reflex he had from the trauma of the fan girls.
"You think my voice is soothing?" He let out a small laugh, being easily amused by Hikari.
"And I guess I got the wrong impression of you."
"And what did you think when you saw me?"
Like a small child, Hikari pursed her lips and thought of a good way to say it. "I kind of thought you were cold."
'Typical.' His lips curved up into a smirk.
"But no cold man would chuckle like you did." Hikari smiled when she remembered his crisp laugh.
A tint of pink tickled his cheeks and he looked away, embarrassed.
"You laughed, but you didn't smile much."
"Smiling isn't really my thing." It was something Sasuke had heard many times from his peers, but it never came across to him how much it bothered people.
"I want to see you smile."
More than a request, it seemed like a command.
Sasuke looked over to see Hikari anticipating for the corner of his lips to curve up. Instead, he smiled lightly, which wasn't enough to satisfy Hikari.
"It's getting late." He got up and stretched, making the blue haired girl pout in disappointment. "I should get home."
"Well I'm not going home until you smile." The raven haired man looked down to the girl crossing her arms, being as stubborn as ever.
"You're kidding." He lifted a brow at her, questioning how serious she was being. "It's time for you to go home."
"I want Sasuke to be happy!" Hikari hopped up from the bench and pursed her lips. "Until then, I'm not going to smile."
Seeing the girl unhappy was so unnatural. It was almost as if her face was going to a waste if she didn't smile.
"Tell you what Hikari." He pointed to the bench they had been sitting on. "If you meet me here tomorrow at ten in the morning, I'll show up with the happiest smile on my face."
"Promise?" He nodded and she still remained a little suspicious.
"I promise."
The next morning, Sasuke found his self walking to the familiar bench instead of the training grounds.
'Uchiha Sasuke, what has gotten into you…'
Once or twice, he fought the urge to walk back home, but the image of Hikari frowning haunted him. He let out a pained groan, wondering why he was suddenly so weak.
But when he saw her in the distance, sitting on the bench, all the worries and questions washed away. She turned and waved to him, giggling as she did so. Then his surroundings were silenced, and he sped over to Hikari.
All the while, his lips had curved up into a genuine smile, unleashing a storm of butterflies in Hikari's stomach.
'Smile Hikari…' He stopped in front of the blue haired girl and furrowed his eyebrows together. She looked up to him, confused at his sudden change in expression. But when he pointed to his lips, she knew why.
To satisfy him, she smiled too, making Sasuke's heart beat faster.
'Because when you smile, the world seems a little kinder, and my future brighter.'