She Understood
Fandom: Naruto
Characters: Uchiha Sasuke/Haruno Sakura
Rating: K+
Genre: Romance
Warnings: none
Prompt: Holding Hands
Summary: He never really asked her for forgiveness. At least not with words.
Notes: Originally written and published for SasuSaku Month 2013 day 1
He never really asked her for forgiveness. At least not with words.
Uchiha Sasuke was never a man of many words. He had always been more a man of action. That was something known by anyone who had met him. Those who were close to him had learnt to read these actions. Especially her, Haruno Sakura.
Two months after the end of the war, a month-and-a-half after going back to Konoha, and four days after leaving his house arrest, he just showed up at the hospital and waited until she finished her shift. He then walked her home while she talked and talked about everything and anything that went through her mind with a smile on her face (because just the fact of having him back made her so happy). When they arrived to her apartment, he hugged her tightly, as if he was afraid of losing her. She understood. And she forgave him.
He never really asked her on a date.
He also never had the opportunity of having a proper talk about the flowers and the bees. Or learning how to flirt from his older brother. Or talking with her mother about all the cute girls in his class. He never learnt how he was supposed to act around the opposite sex. Most specifically, how to show his interest in one of them. And awkwardly asking Naruto how he had started off with that Hyuuga girl or flipping through Kakashi's books wasn't of big help.
One day five months since his comeback, after training, on their way to Ichiraku, he just held her hand while their blond best friend kept bragging about how strong he had gotten since they first formed Team 7. She turned to him with a surprised look on her face and noticed his face was a little more serious than usual. She then realized it was because he was nervous (after all, she could read him better than anyone else), so she flashed one of those brilliant smiles of hers as they kept walking. Since then, watching her holding onto his arm as they walked through the village became a common view.
He never really asked her to stay for the night.
Suppressing his own feelings and emotions for most of his teenage years, the Uchiha suddenly found himself unsettled by the confusing signs sent by his body, heart and mind. It didn't take long for him to realize (much to his relief) that what he was going through was normal. Hearing Suigetsu and Kiba talk about women was more than enough of a proof. He was also aware that these signals revolved around his pink-haired girlfriend. But he didn't know how to move things forward so, once again, he turned to the infamous books his former teacher loved so much.
He first tried with a couple pick-up lines copied from the book, but the phrases were always left unfinished when he realized all those words sounded awfully awkward in his mouth. He then tried to use his good looks showing them off a little when they were on a date, but the Haruno never showed any remarkable reaction to it.
One night, after coming home late for a mission, Sasuke ended up oversleeping and missing training with his best friend, something very unusual for a person as organized as him. Hours later, during the evening, Sakura went to see him thinking he might have any wounds from his mission. After eating his favorite food for dinner and watching a movie, she was getting ready to leave. Just when she was about to walk out of the door, he grabbed her hand. She looked at him and noticed the desire in his eyes. As it turned out, she had also been wanting him for a long time.
He never really asked her to move in.
Suddenly, walks in the park, double-dates at Ichiraku and a couple passionate nights a week stopped being enough for the Uchiha. He didn't have enough for her. He wanted to hear her voice welcoming him back at night, and he wanted her to be the first thing his black eyes saw every morning. He wanted to cook, eat dinner, and clean after with her. He wanted to sleep on her lap while she read her medical texts, and he wanted to sit on the balcony of his apartment and watch the stars with her.
Eight months since he first held her hand, she noticed how he started to make changes to his residence. He began by buying a toothbrush and similar health care products for whenever she stayed with him. He then made space in his closet and bookcase so she could leave some of her stuff. He also started to buy sweet food, especially dango and chocolates, just in case she was craving for some. Before Sakura noticed, she spent more of her time at his apartment than in her own. But she did realize that her presence didn't annoy the Uchiha - it was the opposite, actually. By the next month, her apartment was on sale.
He never really asked her to marry him.
One April morning, Sakura waked up early, as usual. She then proceeded to go to the kitchen and prepare the coffee she would drink after taking a shower, as usual. However, sleepy as she still was, she picked up a piece of clothing from the floor and put it on without paying much attention to it. If she was aware that what she had on was Sasuke's shirt or not, he didn't know. He only knew that the red and white symbol on it's back looked great on her. It was almost as if it was made to match with her cherry blossom hair.
Almost exactly a year and a half since he stepped back into Konoha, she had a double shift at the hospital. He prepared her favorite food for dinner and waited for her. When the girl came back later that night, she noticed something unusual was going on. Maybe it was the food, or his attitude. Or maybe it was the fact that he was wearing a shirt and a cologne she had previously gave him. She just knew something was coming up.
She finally understood what it was when, at the end of the night, a diamond ring slipped through her finger by a pair of trembling hands.
Author's note: I decided to try luck with SSM. I'll be trying to update everyday ^w^ Enjoy~
October 2016 update: added the summary at the beginning