Hi :) This is the first fanfic I have ever written/posted and I'm just learning how to navigate the site so I apologize in advance for any mistakes!

Reviews are encouraged. I accept positive and negative feedback within reason.

Yes, it does start out a little slow, but if I want to make a lengthy story I can't put the climax within the first few chapters, so bear with me here!

I try to write a chapter or 2 every couple of days so I will try to update regularly.

Please enjoy!

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or any of the characters associated with the manga/anime.

Chapter 1

She tossed and turned in her queen sized bed, groaning with annoyance. 'It's already 8 am? Uhg I feel as if I just laid down to sleep' thought the disgruntled young woman.

She rose, perhaps too quickly, as her head began to pound with the familiar dull headache feeling she woke with most mornings. 'At least my hangovers don't result in excessive nausea and vomiting' she thought, 'headaches are manageable.'

Dragging her sore body from under her light pink, silk sheets, she shuffled her way to the bathroom, covering her eyes from the blinding light of sunshine. Ripping open the medicine cabinet she popped three Tylenol, shed her pajamas, and hopped in the shower, attempting to scrub off any leftover scent of the dirty bar she was at last night.

Feeling satisfied with her quick shower she wrapped a towel around her thin frame and walked the short distance to her small kitchen to brew some coffee. Scanning her apartment she noticed her best friend, Ino, passed out on her black leather couch. 'Whatever,' thought Sakura, 'she'll find a ride a home I'm sure.'

Sakura then ran a brush through her mid-length, pink hair, applied a little make up to cover the bags under her eyes, and threw on her scrubs from yesterday's long day of work.

After throwing the bottle of Tylenol in her bag and grabbing a steaming mug of coffee, Sakura headed out her front door, not bothering to lock it behind her, seeing as she has a house sitter. She was already close to running late as is. 'But this is just a typical morning' thought the exhausted girl.

Parking her car in the employee parking lot of St. Goddaime's Hospital she chugged the last her coffee and forced a smile on her face as she walked through the sliding doors of the sterile building.

Inside was a madhouse, like always. People bustling every which way, blinding lights, and phones constantly ringing.

"You know, if you want to continue being a nurse Sakura, you probably shouldn't have a hangover every morning you come in…" said a quiet voice from behind her.

"Hinata!" said Sakura with a genuine smile on her face, "I've cut back, I promise" she winked. "How's your morning so far?"

"160 stitches, 10 x-rays, 3 casts, and one scrub in on a routine biopsy" said the petite, blue haired girl as they both began to walk down the hallway.

"It can't get any more routine than that!" joked Sakura as the two began to chuckle.

"Sakura!" bellowed a deep, feminine voice, "You're just about late…again. That's the 4th time this week."

Turning around slowly to face her superior, Sakura shrunk a little, as if to act as innocent as possible. "Ahh Tsnunade, funny story really. You see I was…"

"Save it." Said Tsnunade holding up her hand, "You're one of my best interns and I need your help in 20 minutes on a triple bypass surgery. Hurry up and study her chart." As she shoved a grey binder into Sakura's hands.

Turning back to Hinata Sakura began to speak "Alright well that's my cue, I better start my day. Hey if you aren't doing anything when you get off work Ino and I are going to…"

"Wild Buck's" said Hinata interrupting her friend "you two go there almost every night, I know where to find you"

"Ahh..ha ha" shrugged an embarrassed Sakura "yeah maybe we should find a new place…I'll see you later!" Sakura waved goodbye to her friend and darted off towards to operating room.

During the triple bypass Sakura was unintentionally dozing off, for her lack of sleep the past couple of weeks had been declining tremendously.

"Clamp…" ordered Tsnuade with an open gloved hand awaiting the instrument. "CLAMP! Earth to Sakura!" she barked

"OH I'm so sorry Dr. Tsnuade I was daydreaming and I…I'm sorry." Sakura pleaded as she hustled to place the clamp into her expecting superior's hand.

"If you're too tired for surgery today, Dr. Haruno, why don't you tell Hinata to scrub in instead, and that's not just a suggestion." Said Tsnuade while glaring at her irresponsible intern.

Defeated, Sakura tore off her surgical mask and latex gloves, storming out of the operating room. 'Dammit. I need to stop making these mistakes or I'll never make it through to be a resident doctor. I need to promise myself I'll go to sleep at a reasonable time tonight.'

After a long 12 hour shift of stitching up stupid teenagers and putting casts on careless little children, Sakura trudged out to her car and took off in her favorite direction, home. Just as she stepped inside and collapsed on a reclining chair, her cellphone began ringing. She didn't even bother to check the caller ID.

"SAKURA! Where are you? Get your ass down to Wild Buck's right now! It's Ladie's night, free beer and half priced margaritas!

"Ino" groaned Sakura "I need to sleep tonight, I can't keep going to work this tired and run down…"

Just as she was making excuses not to go, she glanced around her empty apartment. 'Well it's not like I have anyone to come home to anyways…never have and I never will…'

"Alright alright you convinced me. I'll be there in 30 minutes."

"Ha I knew it wouldn't take much to get you down here" said the blonde haired girl across the phone. Sakura could hear the triumph in her voice. She rolled her eyes as she hung up and ventured to her closet to find something alluring to wear out.

After 10 minutes, Sakura was adorned in a tight, short black pencil skirt, exposing most of her thighs, and a sheer black top, showing her pink bandeau beneath it. She strapped on a pair of heels, grabbed her ID, and locked the door behind her.

While waiting for a cab outside of her apartment complex, Sakura happened to glance across the street at a family playing on a swing set. The father, pushing his young daughter on the swing as she yelled "higher daddy!" and the mother, taking in the serene scene in front of her with a smile on her face.

'What I'd give to be that young again…have my parents here still…' she began to think just as the cab pulled to the curb, redirecting her attention. Hopping in and giving the driver directions, Sakura felt a feeling of relief knowing that soon enough the cool liquor will slide down her throat, numbing all of her memories and nostalgia.

'Here we go again, I hope something worth my while will actually happen for once, I'm beginning to think this is just a waste of time' she thought just as she entered the bar.

Loud music, sweating boddies, and shot glasses galore greeted her at the enterance.

"SAKUURRRA" slurred her sidekick Ino "these fine gentlemen here have offered to buy us a drink, what do you say?" as she winked seductively at one of the two men. They appeared older, maybe 26 or 27 Sakura was guessing. She knew her friend would more than likely go home with one of the men tonight, and although they were undeniably attractive, Sakura wasn't interested.

'Uhg, I'm tired of the same old desperate guys trying to get girls drunk to take advantage of them.'

"No thanks I'm fine actually…" replied Sakura as she made her way to the otherside of the bar. "I'll have a whiskey, straight please."

"Straight whiskey huh?" mumbled a voice to the left of her

Shocked that she didn't even notice the man, Sakura jumped a little, turning to face the voice.

"Sorry if I scared you there, didn't mean to." Said the mystery man.

Sakura looked at the man and instantly became speechless. He was gorgeous, handsome, toned, down right 'HOT' thought Sakura. 'How did I miss someone this attractive sitting right next to me? I'm such a fool!'

"Uhh..hahah..its um..it's okay" Sakura managed to get out of her mouth right as blush began to creep into her cheeks. Turning away quickly she began to answer his question. "Yeah it's been a long day at work I guess."

"People don't drink straight whiskey after a couple lousy hours at work, they usually just get a cold beer. What demons are you really hiding?" asked the man next to her.

Sakura's mouth remained open in awe. 'How did he know I've got a lot more to deal with than just work…?' she thought to herself

"Calm down, Cherryblossom. I'm just joking. My name is Itachi." He said as he extended his hand for a shake.

"Nice to meet you Itachi, I'm Sakura." She said while taking his hand. 'Cherryblossom? What? I just met this guy. Please don't tell me he's another bar creep.' She thought 'but I've never seen this man here before.'

"Allow me to buy your drink for you miss Sakura, seeing as how you're day was so bad." Said Itachi "my treat."

"Thank you!" Sakura said with a smile. "So, Itachi, I've never seen you here before and I…I come quite often.." Sakura began saying before she stopped herself. 'Get a hold of yourself Sakura! You don't want this guy to think you're an alcoholic and scare him off.' She thought to herself.

"I just moved back to Konah two days ago, figured I see if I'd run into any old classmates by chance." Replied Itachi.

They both began to reach for the glass of whiskey when their hands accidentally bumped into one another. Sakura immediately began to blush and pulled her hand away. "I'm sorry" she mumbled in embarrassment. Itachi just kept looking at her with a slight smile on his face, almost as if he was amused by her shy behavior.

"Would you like to dance?" asked Itachi, trying to settle the air between them.

"Sure!" exclaimed Sakura. It had been quite a while since any decent looking man had asked her for a dance.

Out on the dance floor Sakura began to really take in the features of her dance partner. His hair was longer, jet black, his eyes just as dark. He had sleek jawbone, the kind you see on male models. His lips were in perfect proportion to his face. Sakura could feel beneath his shirt that his arms were sculpted and his body chiseled. 'Oh my god, this may be the hottest man I've ever danced with" thought Sakura as she let the music control her body.

They danced for hours together, sometimes slow dancing, sometimes grinding on one another. Itachi announced that he needed to use the restroom and that he'd be right back, so Sakura used it as an opportunity. She snatched Ino from her two suitors and went to the ladies room. Pulling out a small bag with a white powder in it, she began to break up two lines.

"This early in the night Sakura?" asked Ino

"Yes, I'm have the greatest time with a man I just met! I want to make this night feel perfect." She dipped her head down, covered one nostril with her index finger, and snorted one of the lines. Ino followed suit quickly after. "Whatever you say Sakura" Ino said as she winked and wandered out of the restroom.

Sakura took a good look at herself in the mirror, her pupils already beginning to dilate. She closed her eyes in bliss and let the feeling of ecstasy take over her body. Walking back to the dance floor she spotted Itachi waiting for her. His eyes watched over her tantalizing body with hunger as her hips swayed closer and closer towards him. 'This girl…she's unlike anyone I've ever met before.' He thought to himself.

As they closed the distance between them their smiles grew bigger. They picked up right where they had left off, no distance between the two. Sakura was in pure heaven. The music was flowing through her veins, the drinks felt cool sliding down her throat, and the man in front of her felt so right. Before she could help herself she propped herself up on her tip-toes and kissed him.

Shocked, even by her own actions, Sakura slowly began to remove her lips from his when she felt a strong hand snake its way through the back of her hair. Itachi captured her lips this time, not wanting to let her go. Sakura felt his soft lips caress hers and she swung her arms around his neck to deepen their intimate moment. Sakura knew it was wrong to kiss a man she just met, hell she didn't even know his last name! But something felt so right to her the instant their lips touched.

Just as soon as the passion began, it had ended. Itachi pulled away with a smile on his face. "Moving a little fast are we Sakura?" he asked with laughter in his voice.

Just as she was about to reply a huge bang echoed throughout the bar. Searching around, Sakura identified the source of the ruckus, Ino. She had been dancing on top of the bar and slipped off, bringing a few people around down with her.

"Oh my god that's my friend! I have to get her home she's obviously had too much to drink!" exclaimed Sakura. "I'm so sorry, here take my number. Maybe call me sometime." She said as she jotted down her cell number on a crumpled napkin and left it in Itachi's hand.

Sakura rushed over to the crash sight, helping her best friend up by the arm.

"Where are those guys you were with earlier?! They should be helping you Ino!"

"Idonnnknnoww" slurred Sakura's best friend.

"Whatever let's just get you home" she said as she led her blonde friend out the front door, glancing back to Itachi who sent her off with seductive wink.

'I really hope he calls me, I haven't felt a connection like that with guy since…' her thoughts were cut off by Ino heaving her dinner onto the sidewalk. Sakura's phone read 1:34 AM. 'So much for getting to sleep at a decent time tonight. But maybe it was worth it this time…' Thought Sakura as she shoved Ino in her front door and onto her couch.