Disclaimer: (oh how I hate wasting space with this...) I do not own Naruto. But I still wish I owned Rock Lee. C
The Handsome Green Beast Finally Gets His Wish
A one-shot by bushybrow101
The sky shed its tears on me, and everything around me. It did not spare a single drop from the earth, but instead gave them all away. It made the day dull and grey, which fit my mood quite well at the moment. Everything that could've possibly gone wrong in the day had, you guessed it, gone wrong. Even my encounter with Sasuke, whom I hadn't talked to in weeks, had gone horribly astray. I sat in front of the academy, on that swing that I'd seen Naruto on so many times, letting the rain soak my skin, recalling that humiliating moment with my dream boy.
I was strolling down the street, on my way to meet up with Naruto, who'd somehow convinced me to go and get some ramen with him. I'd told him that the "date," that he called it, was strictly as friends, but he still insisted that this meant that I was his girlfriend. I'd show him when I got there...he'd be lucky to go home with just a few bruises. Me? Be Naruto's girlfriend? Ha!
I laughed out loud to myself, halfway between a giggle and a malicious cackle. Little did I know, the person who I'd wanted to see the most that day rounded the corner.
"Sakura." I heard his deep, yet smooth voice and I recognized it at once. He'd seen me cackling like a hyena, and I hadn't even noticed him. We stopped in front of each other, a little less than three feet between us. I gave him a nervous smile, hoping he'd forget what he'd seen...and heard.
"What was that?" he said at last, breaking the silence between us. I rubbed my hands together uneasily, trying desperately to find an answer that wouldn't discomfit myself.
"I...I uh...was laughing because...Naruto told me a funny joke!" I said, knowing full well that he wouldn't believe it. Sasuke leaned over and looked behind me, and saw no one, as I knew he would.
"Um, Sakura, I don't see Naruto anywhere. Actually, I thought he was waiting at the ramen hut for someone. He said something about a date..." he trailed off, and I knew he was coming to his own conclusion in his head.
"No, he was just here! Honest! You know him, always running off in a hurry, right?" I said, knowing what his next words were going to be. You're going on a date with Naruto!
"Oh. Ok." Was all he said, and he walked passed me. I was mortified. He hadn't made fun of me, hadn't called me annoying as he usually did, hadn't talked down to me at all. At first I took it to be a good thing, but after he turned around and called back to me, I though otherwise.
"Pity you're going out with Naruto. And I was going to ask you to go to the Konoha festival with me." He shouted. My mouth gaped open. Was I hearing right? Or was I imagining things? My heart seemed to stop. It was all I'd ever hoped for; Sasuke to finally ask me out. And I couldn't accept or even answer for that matter, all because I'd decided to humor Naruto and go to the ramen hut with him. My world was crashing down on me. And it was all Naruto's fault.
The rain felt cold against my skin. I hugged myself close, wondering what was going on at the festival, which had started nearly a half an hour ago. I wondered who Sasuke had decided to go with, who was probably swinging on his arm , and wished it was me. That damned Naruto had ruined everything, again, and it had cost me, again.
I felt like my heart was breaking. There was real pain in my chest, and I wondered if I should try and do anything for it. I sighed, and realized that my breathing was shallow and shaky. 'Hmm, I wonder why.' I thought. I wiped a slow rolling tear from my face and stared up at the sky, an occasional raindrop falling into my eye.
I heard footsteps, and hoped to god it wasn't Naruto. He had no idea why I ditched him at the ramen hut. He'd come around, see me like this, and try and comfort me. With my luck, Sasuke would come around again, and his opinion of me would be reduced to dirt. I impulsively clenched my fists, ready to punch him when he got close enough. I closed my eyes, listening behind me for him...Just a little closer...
I stood and turned on my heel and punched something hard. I expected to hear Naruto's yelp of pain, but I heard nothing but the footsteps, still, and the pounding of the rain on the ground. My eyes were still squeezed tight, and I slowly opened them to reveal someone completely new.
"Lee?" I said. I furrowed my brow in confusion. Why was he here? Shouldn't he be at the festival with his friends?
"Hello, Sakura." With a start I realized that I almost punched him in the face, but with his catlike reflexes he had moved his head just in time. My fist was now lodged in the tree that the swing hung from. He looked at me quizzically as he jogged in place, and I knew he wanted to ask me the question that I wanted to ask him.
"So why are you not at the festival?" he asked, and with a twang of pain in my chest I remembered.
"I...um..." I looked away from him and dropped my fist to my side. Why should Lee have to know? He'd probably laugh at the whole thing, and then run off again.
"I heard you were...dating Naruto..." he said quietly, and out of the corner of my eye I saw him cease movement. We stood there in the rain, letting the silence between us grow with each second. I couldn't bring myself to speak, and my guess was neither could he. I stared off into the distance, hearing the faint cheers of people at the festival, and he stared at me.
"I'm not dating Naruto. I don't know what kind of crap he's spreading around, but no. Never." I said, and turned to him. He stared into my eyes, and I forced myself to turn away, not wanting what he was seconds away from giving me.
"Why are you out here in the rain?" I said, just to get him talking. He said nothing at first, then hastily answered me.
"I am training. If it is not four hundred laps around Konoha, then it is six hundred sit-ups in the rain." I nodded, looking at my feet. My toes were beginning to prune from all the water. My hands probably were, too.
"Well, I gotta get going, then..." I forced out a little laugh, but I knew I wasn't fooling anyone. I turned away from him, but he still stared at me, with those big, round eyes...wait. What was I thinking? Rock Lee, with big, round eyes? This was odd...I'd never really paid attention to his eyes. Just his fuzzy eyebrows.
"Wait, Sakura. If you are n-not going with N-Naruto, then would you c-c-consider going to the fe-festival with m-m-me?" he stuttered. I smiled, though I knew he couldn't see it, and though I had no idea why. The boy of my dreams had wanted to go with me, so why on Earth would I even consider going with another boy that I didn't even like?
"Yeah, sure. What time do you wanna meet up?" the words slipped out of my mouth. My mind was racing: What the hell was I saying? I'd never want to be with Lee! The pain in my chest had subsided at least, so I took that as the only good thing in the situation.
"Wha-...What!? Oh, happy day! Sakura's going with me to the festival!" I turned around once again to see him doing a little jig. I giggled a little. Once he saw me looking, though, he stopped at once and I could make out a hint of pink in his face.
"I-I-I will meet you here again in one hour, Sakura! Yes, I will be prepared by then!" he bowed and ran off. I shook my head and watched him as he disappeared into the mist. Just before he faded out of view, I saw him jump up with his fist in the air. He probably yelled 'Yes!' or something like that.
"Oh, Lee..." I was still confused. What had made me say yes to Rock Lee? Even though he was the only boy who'd ever willingly revealed his feelings to me, I'd never looked at him as anything other than a loyal friend and role model. Going to the Konoha festival with him, and having other people see us together, was like saying we were engaged or something.
My eyes widened more the more that I thought. But I couldn't bring myself to just ditch him, so I'd have to go with him, no matter how much I didn't really want to. I sprinted down the street, opposite the direction that Lee had run, the sky still crying, though I was not.
It had stopped raining, but the clouds and mist had not disappeared. I leaned against the tree, the mark from where I had punched it right next to my shoulder, and I stared up at the sky. Lee wasn't here yet. It wasn't like him to be late for anything. But then again, I'd shown up nearly 20 minutes early. He probably wasn't expecting that.
I took my eyes off of the cloudy heavens and looked down at my still pruned toes. I'd changed out of my usual blue sandals and into silver flats. I replaced my red jumper/dress with a plain black one that went down to mid-thigh, and powdered my eyes a purple color. I curled my hair, making it look shorter than it already was, and put in a pair of earrings that I'd gotten from Ino when we were little. I looked like I tried too hard, so Lee would probably laugh at me. Nothing I wasn't used to.
For some reason, I felt different. It was like the mood that I was in wasn't my own. It was like cheerful, excited, miserable, and petrified all balled into one emotion. I, even with my big head, couldn't find a word to describe it. I sighed, wondering if Sasuke was going to be at the festival.
"S-Sakura?" I pursed my lips. He was finally here. So he decided to show up early, too. By ten minutes, anyway. I turned around and looked at his pink cheeks, his big round eyes, his funky haircut, and his big, black, bushy eyebrows. He hadn't really changed for the festival; he was just in a green t-shirt and green shorts. At least he wasn't still in the jumpsuit that screamed cheesy.
"Hi, Lee. Are you ready?" I grinned at him. His eyes widened for a second, probably trying to hold back laughter at my futile attempt at being pretty. His mouth hung open, and he wasn't saying anything. Just...staring. It was kind of creepy.
"Lee?" He blinked, shook his head a little, and beamed at me. Here we go. Laugh it up.
"I am sorry, Sakura. But..." tears streamed down his face.
"...You are an angel! Your beauty is memorizing!" his eyes closed and he lifted his clenched fist. I smirked. Normally I would have freaked out and ran away. But then again, I normally wouldn't have accepted his asking me to the festival. So he still thought I was beautiful? I had to give him props for liking me even when he saw me looking like a porcelain doll. Maybe he wasn't too unique for me after all...What is the matter with me?
"Th-...thank you, Lee. You're the only person who's ever said that to me before." He opened his eyes and that creepy stare came back. I ignored it and continued with something that I'd wanted to say to him for the longest time...even though I didn't fully know it until then.
"From every boy I've ever met, or any person for that matter, it's always been, 'What's up billboard brow?' or 'Why's your forehead so big?' You're the first person that's...that's ever even looked at me as someone other than 'that girl with the big forehead.' And..." I stepped closer to him, that pain in my chest slowly resurfacing. If I did this, it would mean no turning back. No more Sasuke. I'd be...
"I want to thank you for it." I bit my lip, then did it. I kissed him. And he accepted it like a little kid getting what he'd been wanting for his birthday. I squeezed my eyes shut, not wanting to see anything else but the inside of my eyelids. This was my first kiss. But...it wasn't with... the person that I'd always wanted to share it with. It was with the person whom I'd never even thought of kissing. Even so, it was just as magical as I'd imagined it to be, regardless of who it was with. As the pain in my disappeared, I realized that I'd been burying the emotions I felt at that moment since the day I'd met him. I'd secretly thought that his fuzzy little eyebrows and his distinctive haircut were adorable. And he'd returned the feelings, even though I'd saddened him many times with my talks of Sasuke and my unmistakable infatuation with him. He'd never given up on me, through all the things I'd put him through. And last, I realized that I was giving him what he'd wished for since that day. And fulfilling my own wish, too. To love, and be loved back.
Hope you liked! Took me a couple weeks to write, proofread, and perfect...I don't want to come off looking like an idiot, do I? R&R, please! Critique is definitely welcomed!