"Looking back, I have this to regret, that too often when I loved, I did not say so."

~Ray Stannard Baker

He left.

You just couldn't believe it….

Sasuke Uchiha, the one guy you had loved, had left the village without warning. He hadn't even said goodbye… Why hadn't he?

"I thought he loved me…" you mumbled to yourself as you sullenly looked out your window, all of the life seeming to have drained from your eyes. Of course, he never said so, but you could have sworn you felt a love connection with him. "I guess I was just being plain stupid…"

You ran your hand through your (H/L), (H/C) locks as you sank deeper into thought.

You thought about all the time you spent with the raven-haired male. You have known him since even before his entire clan was massacred, so naturally, you had an abundance of memories you shared with him.

You two had been best childhood friends, and even after he had become cold and distant, you still both spent much of your time together.

You recalled every memory you had of your time together.

You remembered how his older brother would gladly take you along with Sasuke to watch him train, the two of you watching in awe and becoming eager to try some of the moves yourselves.

You remembered how phlegmatic he seemed to become as a result of his clan's genocide. He refused to talk to anyone for a while, save for rare occasions, but you never gave up on him.

You remembered how you got to be a ninja and graduate from the academy with him. You were disappointed that you weren't assigned to his team, but at least you both graduated.

It was hard for you to reminisce in these memories, knowing that you'd never be able to create more of them ever again.

You hoped so dearly that he would come back, but you knew deep inside that he wouldn't. He wouldn't come back soon, he wouldn't come back later, and he probably wouldn't even come back at all during his lifetime.

It pained you to face the truth, but that's just the harsh reality you had to cope with.

You didn't know what was worse: the fear of eventually losing these memories just as all memories are forgotten, or the fact that you'd never make more with him again.

You weren't sure what to do anymore. All you could think about was how you couldn't help but miss that cold onyx glare. You didn't want to miss out on seeing that adorably angry face, framed by his raven locks.

That pang of loneliness you felt when thinking of him was just something you'd be stuck with for the rest of your life.

~oOo~

It was taking Sasuke all he had not to come back to Konoha to you.

He wanted to leave, but he never wanted to leave you. He was having a hard time thinking about how he'd never see you again, but he had to do this to get the power he needed. He felt awful leaving you like that, but he was terrified that seeing your face one last time would change his mind.

What made him feel the worst was that he never told you what he wanted you to hear the most.

"I loved her… and because I never said so, she'll never know."