"A Lost Memory"
That painful feeling was so overwhelming that put in the shade that previous feeling which was now a lost memory, that forgotten meeting…
In the Sand territory, kids played happily with their little friends.
"Here!"
"Pass it!"
The ball bounced from a little girl to a boy but he kicked it so hard that made the rubber ball stay in a tall wall where no kid could possible reach it.
"Oh crap!" cursed a boy.
"What do we do?"
"We haven't mastered wall climbing no jutsu yet…"
Indeed they were going to became nin someday…
Suddenly small amounts of sand surround the ball making some 'shif' sounds and bring it down to a small kid with red hair. The kids that were playing just a moment ago had their eyes wide in surprise and fear.
"Y- you are…" stammered the girl hidden behind one of her petite friends.
Another kid spoke. "Ga- Gaara…"
"It's Gaara of the Sand…"
The child who was the farthest from the named boy that left his teddy bear on the ground to catch the rubber ball yelled to his friends, "Run for it!"
They did as he said. The kid got afraid.
"Wait! Don't leave me alone!"
The sand unexpectedly moved again but this time to catch the running kids. Capturing them they felled. It seemed that the sand was ready to attack…
§
On the Sand playground a lonely boy sit alone not because he wanted but the reason was that they all, the Sand community was afraid of him. Gaara of the Sand.
The sun was saying that soon it's time to set down, slowly the sky turned orange as the clouds slowly moved to eventually disappear in the dark.
He hugged his teddy bear tightly as trying to have a little company so he would feel so abandoned.
All of a sudden a little girl appeared behind coming from nowhere he could think, considering her curious face that was the most welcoming face he had ever received from another kid since he could remember. She blinked several times. He ignored her because he knew that she would just go away when she knew who he was or when she realized by seeing him that he was someone detested.
He felt so lonely…
But the girl didn't go away instead of that she went closer to him. That fact angered him because if that happened was usually because that kind of kids was there just to bug him then scared run away.
They always run away from him. Always.
He barely noticed that it was a she then he turned to see the small rock at his left. The contrary side where she was standing, watching him as he was some kind of new bug she found.
She really bugged him. He didn't like her presence.
The sand from the ground traveled to get her and hang her upside down. As usually, she yelled. But her yelled was a different yell that he was used to hear.
"Hentai!"
§
'Why is he alone?' the little girl asked herself. 'Isn't he bored to just sit there doing nothing?'
She decided to walk to him and ask him if he wasn't bored. 'He has red hair, funny' she compared him with her dark hair.
Getting closer she could see that he had a cute brown teddy bear. 'How cute! I want one' she speaks to herself again. Just when she was a meter away from him she realizes that she was upside down.
"Aaahhhhhhh!"
§
Gaara blinked. 'Hentai!'
"Put me down you pervert!" she yelled again fixing her small orange dress so he could not look something he should not see.
Little Gaara's mind was blank. She was still with her head facing the ground. Her black hair was falling just like her little spiked tail on her left side of her head.
She yelled 'hentai' once again and he drops her like he a lightning had stroke him.
She frowned and point at him accusingly. "You are a bad boy!" exclaimed the girl not leaving her ugly face showing her discontent. Her dark purple eyes staring at him furiously.
Gaara was stunned. Those were her first direct words to him besides calling him pervert that is. Why did she talk to him like this, wasn't she afraid of him?
He blinked again as he sees her getting up but not leaving.
"You are not scared of me?" he asked innocently.
Those were their first words to each other: "Hentai" and "You are not scared of me?"
"Eh?" She bends her head closer to her shoulder. "Why aren't you running away from me?"
"Why would I be running away from you?" she replied naively. The boy still surprised didn't do anything. She smiled and got closer, he took a step back. She takes a step forward, looking at his teddy motionless in his hand.
"You have a cute teddy" she said and smile warmly at him. His grip tightens.
"Why?" he asks not trusting her.
"Because it's adorable!" she giggles, it was the first time that he sees someone chuckling near him, in front of him.
"Crazy" That was his conclusion. She was crazy…
"Eh?" She looked at him, "what do you mean?" Her hands on her hips.
Speaking again, "You are crazy."
"Eh? Umm hehehe"
Gaara saw a faint flush on her face. "Some people say that I am"
…Silence…
"Are you bored?"
"Eh?" He looks at her strangely. "Aren't you bored on just sitting there doing anything?"
His face went from astonished to sad, again.
The little girl noticed this. "Oh sorry did I say something bad?"
Her face reveals that she was really sorry. 'Sorry' it was the first time someone ever apologized to him sincerely.
Trying to cheer the environment she said, "Your eyes look funny, just like a panda bear hi hi hi" He faces the ground once again.
"Sorry, did I say something bad again?" she looked very sad.
Stuttering he manage to say a low no. She beamed.
"Why are you here?"
"Mm I think, I got lost." She answers half smiling with a little of her tongue out.
"Lost?"
'Lost is when you feel alone? I don't like being alone'
"Do you want to play something?" she invited him.
"Play?"
"Yes, hehe you don't speak a lot don't you, you just say short words"
"You want to play with me?" he asked uncertain emphasizing 'me.'
"Sure why not?" She ensures him smiling. As he stays quiet she got doubtful. "You don't want to play?"
In the end he said yes and they started to play with the sand, this was the first time someone plays with him, it felt nice, warm, he was not alone anymore. As they played she tried to make conversations like what did he liked, she told him that she wanted a teddy just like his and that she'll try to find it. After a while she finally was able to make him chat back as they continued playing on the ground, she had this necklace hanging in a strange triangle pointing to the floor with the word love written in ancient Chinese that also worked for the Japanese, it left him curious. He asked her what love was.
"Mm I think love is when you feel warm here," she explained with little words indicating her heart, "specially if there is someone is with you, and you don't feel alone." At last she makes him smile.
His chest felt warm where he usually feels pain.
The sun had almost finished setting down when she said that she had to go back. He looks at her.
"I'm Tomoyo. What's your name?" she asks.
"Gaara" he responds. As she got her answer she unties the red bandanna she has on her neck, which was covering the turtle neck of her ginger dress.
"Here Gaara" she offered her peace of fabric to him, grinning. He takes it.
"Why?"
She giggles again, "because I want to give this to you. It's a gift." He gazes the red soft material in his hand.
"I was fun to play with you, I'll try to come so we can play again" she tells him with sweet smile as she turns to leave.
"Bye Gaara"
With that she disappears. His mind began to work.
"She likes my teddy…"
'She had fun with me…'
"She wants to play with me again…"
"She gave him a gift…"
'Gifts are free; I don't have to give her anything in return…'
He smiles at the memories he just had had. Next he realizes he is alone again, in the play ground with his teddy. He watches carefully the space it was like she was never there…
He clenches his fist with his free hand. There is something.
The red bandanna.
It wasn't a dream. Someone really spends her time with him, he was happy.
§
The sand attacks a kid but a man gets between and protects the child.
Yashamaru.
"Gaara-sama please calm yourself" the man asks. He stops.
At his uncles' house he tries to hurt himself with a knife but he is protected by the sand.
"Yashamaru, do injuries hurt?" the innocent kid with red hair asks.
"What's exactly pain?"
"… It's unpleasant"
Next the kid tells his uncle that his heart, in his chest always hurts a lot… then his uncle explains the difference between physical injuries and emotional scars… and there is only one thing that can stop such heartache…
Love.
Fin
Ok I finished my first one-shot and my first Naruto fic, very simple but I'm proud because it's the first time I finished a fic in one day! Well not exactly in one day cuz its 1:26 am. Hell yeah! I hope the fic is good, I really like it I had it in mind since long time but finally wrote it down since my pc is out of antivirus and I had time so… did you like it? If I have more time I'll translate it to Spanish, my native tongue.
The fic is based from the manga around ch 129 so if you want to understand better this story read the manga! when they talk about Gaara's past, it's so sad! cries so I wanted to put something good in it, Tomoyo© is an original character, she might appear again if I decide to write another Naruto fic with Neji XD or maybe even Itachi!
The story that happens between Gaara and Tomoyo, she is just so crazy that doesn't fear Gaara lol craziness can go to that point! Mine CAN! According to me this might explain why he always has that red fabric on his back XD and the word love in his forehead but that's my craziness.
Wanna review me? It's free! XD
Eternally Asuka