COURTSHIP
She had first heard of the proposal about three days after she had returned from a month-long mission. Sakura couldn't call it anything but bad timing—after arriving to her house exhausted and aching, all she wanted to do was curl up in her bed for a week or more, be lazy, and enjoy her days off.
So why oh why did this have to happen to her? She had never asked for it. In fact, she had never even cared about dating or marriage. Right now, she was in her most glorious of times. She was blossoming into more of a woman each day, and her career as a medic was advancing so very quickly.
She had surpassed Tsunade years ago, but yet, she still continued to grow physically, as well as mentally. The weak little kunoichi of team seven had long disappeared, and was replaced by a headstrong, confident woman, who would protect those she deemed precious to her at all costs, no matter what she was up against, and always held her heart before her, giving it to others as a gift, even if it could backfire on her and cause nothing but hurt in the end. She was willing to risk it.
Sakura hadn't realized it, but her rapid growth in status and strength had attracted many suitors. While she was gone on duty in the hospital, or traveling past the boundaries of Konoha during a mission, suitors would appear to the front door of her parent's house, asking for the chance to court this charming young lady who didn't even realize all the attention she was grabbing.
As soon as she had returned from her journey and stepped into the house, she noticed something odd right away. There was an extra pair of shoes set beside the door, which immediately alerted Sakura to realize that there was a guest in the house.
Setting her own pair of shoes on the floor, she quietly closed the door behind her and slowly approached the living room, where she could hear voices—two out of the three being her mother and father, of course—but the other one was unfamiliar.
Then again, it wasn't surprising to her. Things like this had been going on the household, ever since she was a child. Since her father played a very important political role in Konoha, both men and woman would come to the house, Sakura not being told of it ahead of time, and would come to either indulge themselves into a nice chat, or go straight to business and talk about issues and key things that needed to be negotiated as soon as possible.
Because of this, Sakura's manners had been sharpened and well nurtured for years until it was beyond perfection. She knew how to treat guests, as well as find ways to excuse herself if she was too busy to include herself into conversations with people she didn't even know. It was only polite, of course, to introduce herself, but sometimes she was far too tired or busy to deal with any company besides herself.
As she got closer and closer to the living room, she realized just how masculine the voice was, immediately telling Sakura that the guest was male. His voice was so impeccably deep that if she were under different circumstances, would probably break out into a light giggle. She had always found such deep voices so very attracting.
Finally, she set foot in the room, not noticing the pair of onyx eyes that were calmly glancing at her with hidden interest.
"Aaah, Sakura," her mother cooed gently. "We were just talking about you. What perfect timing! Take a seat."
Sakura still hadn't taken the time to even glance at her guest—she was automatically assuming that it was a fellow worker of her father's.
Walking up to the couch where her father and mother were placed at, she set herself down, relaxing her tense shoulders as she sighed softly, but not rudely.
"You've met our guest before, haven't you, Sakura?"
"Of course she has! Why, one of her own teammates is an Uchiha! He is your brother, isn't he?"
Sakura knew right away that the ending sentence wasn't directed towards her; it was directed towards their guest.
Calm, soft emerald eyes slowly turned to meet the eyes of the guest, and was all put shocked to find, in the flesh, none other than Uchiha Itachi.
Sakura nearly jolted from her seat in surprise, and tried her best not to openly show her surprise to the Uchiha, but she could see, from the glint in his eyes, that he already knew just how shocked she was.
What in the world was Uchiha Itachi doing in her household?
Well, rather she and her parent's household—but it was the same thing. Their house was her house. It was where she had grown up from a very young age—so many memories were hidden in the walls of this house.
Sakura couldn't understand what business the Uchiha would have with her, of all people. Sure, Sasuke, the younger brother of this man, was her teammate, but that didn't have anything to do with him. It wasn't like she was interrupting or causing problems with the Uchiha clan, nor had she ever even stopped to chat with this stoic heir of the Uchiha clan.
To her…he was a mystery all on its own—a mystery she had never tried to uncover. Sure, she had seen him a couple of times and exchanged a few words with him, but that was only because of her job as a medic.
A prodigy like Uchiha Itachi, she was sure, was brought along on many missions, and because, of course, genius or not, he got injured, Sakura found herself having to treat him every now and then. Each and every time, the company had been awkward, but she had found a way to live around him without suffocating, surprisingly enough.
But still, being his medic or not, it didn't explain why he was here. In this house. Right now.
As she continued to ponder this thought, the elder of the Uchiha she knew all too well, but at the same time, so very little, spoke.
"I have come to you in regard of a certain interest, Sakura," his smooth, tenor voice said, immediately answering her most troubling question that had been taking free roam in her head.
"Before you arrived, I had explained to both Mrs. Haruno and Haruno-sama what that was."
Once again, his soft, but firm voice, was talking to her.
"Unless you feel that you want to discuss it with her, Haruno-sama," Itachi stated politely toward Sakura's father, "I do not mind in the least telling her what I have on my mind."
"Go ahead, Uchiha," her father approved. "I feel that it's better for the words to come out of your mouth than mine. It will mean more."
Itachi nodded in agreement.
"Sakura."
It was the first time he had ever said her name, and for the first time since her arrival, Sakura could feel herself going stiff.
His deep, deep voice, was almost paralyzing. She was getting affected by it without even meaning to.
"Yes?" she answered softly back to him, despite the sudden jump in her heart when his eyes met hers. Until now, she had never realized how very handsome he was, how his hair drooped over his eyes, or the way his dark, onyx eyes seemed to almost mesmerize.
"I came hear in search of permission from your parents."
"Permission for what?" Sakura immediately asked, priding him to go further.
The Uchiha paused for a moment before replying. His words were firm, and she could tell, by the way he spoke it, that he had determination. Determination that was…reserved for none other than herself.
"I asked for permission from your parents to allow me to court you."
Sakura swore that as soon as those words escaped his lips that her blood ran cold. Immediately, she began to go into overdrive, unable to figure out what exactly it was that he was saying.
Court me? Court me? As in…the beginning to an interest…for ME?
"And, if it goes along well…to have your hand in marriage."
At that, Sakura completely froze.
Marriage? Courtship? This was all going too fast for her! Just as she was beginning to delve farther into her career like never before, HE just had to interrupt…and ruin the balance.
"No."
Sakura surprised even herself at the sudden answer. Without giving him a second word, a chance to prove himself, she had all but rejected him.
"No?!" her mother repeated in shock. "But why not, dear? I think it's about time you got a healthy dose of romance and a relationship going on in your life. You need it."
"At least give the man a chance," her father said, supporting his wife. "Be reasonable."
Her parents were frustrating her. Dammit, she didn't need this in her life! Not now! She needed to focus on other things, and she sure as hell didn't need something like the idea of marriage to be growing on the back of her mind.
She just didn't have the time, nor was she willing to make time for it.
"I said no," Sakura repeated with an absolute tone in her voice. A tone that was telling others not to ask questions and to just go along with it.
"I don't understand!" her mother replied back. "Why are you so against this?"
"I am old enough to make my own decisions," Sakura curtly replied. "We shouldn't even be discussing this. He does not have my approval. Simple as that."
"Well he might not have your approval young lady, but he certainly has both mine and your mother's."
Just great. One step into the house, and this man was already making both her parents turn on her.
"Can't you at least think about it?" her mother said, trying to find some kind of a compromise. "You may regret making such a swift decision, Sakura. Think, dear."
Sakura's mouth changed into a firm line before she sighed, giving up.
"Very well," she said, looking at her mother. "I will…think about it."
But it sure in hell doesn't mean that I'll accept in the end anyway, she thought.
This man wanted to court her? To have her by his side? Then he was going to have to earn it.
And with that, Sakura stood up, excusing herself from the discussion to go up to her room, which was, thankfully, very far away from the living room. In fact, it was upstairs.
Sakura didn't dare to return back downstairs until she heard the slamming of the door. Without even stopping to think, she stood up, assuming that it was Itachi that left…
…only to find him waiting for her in the living room, relaxed and calmly looking at her.
All it took was one swift look to the door to realize that she was with him.
In this big house.
All alone.
Just the two of them.
She silently cursed to herself, upset at her parent's decision—the decision to leave her alone with him without even telling her—and all but ran back upstairs…only to be followed.
She knew it was him as she was interrupted from her reading by a knock on her door.
He was asking for permission to come in.
She didn't even need a moment to know her answer.
"No."
He may have ruled over her parents, but there was no way in hell that he was going to earn permission to enter her room. Her room!
Sakura didn't care how rude she was acting, nor did she care what the Uchiha thought of all this. These were her feelings he was toying with, and there was no way she was going to let a man she didn't even know very well to begin with into her heart.
She had already learned once before that doing something like that would cause nothing but heartbreak, and at the moment, her heart was clenching, wavering, wanting to invite the Uchiha into her heart so she could finally fill in that gaping hole of hurt, but she sucked in the pain.
She wasn't desperate enough to turn to a man she didn't even know! She was stronger than that, smarter than that, too!
Before she could continue her thoughts, Itachi, without even asking (even though he did ask before, but that didn't count since she said no) entered her room and closed it behind him with a simple click.
"Sakura."
"What do you want?" she asked, pretending to be irritated. "I'm busy," she snapped.
"I would like to speak with you."
Despite her obvious rejection, despite her obvious lack of interest, the pompous bastard couldn't get it through his head that she was simply NOT INTERESTED! Why did he still continue to try?! It was frustrating!
"Then make it quick," she snapped at him once again.
"I've heard nothing but good things about you from countless people, and with your growing reputation in Konoha, it's hard not to hear about your success. I myself have experienced seeing you in your best field of work. You remember those times at the hospital, when I was in need of your assistance, correct?"
She nodded, and then gestured for him to continue.
"Through time, I began to learn more about you, and soon, I developed…an interest in you. An interest that continued to grow every time I spoke with you."
Just where exactly is he going with this? Sakura thought.
"You have a clean reputation, and with you being the apprentice to someone such as Hokage-sama, it isn't very hard to find information about you. You are considered to be a very intelligent person, and your skills as both a shinobi and medic are well-recognized throughout Konoha."
"Oh? So is that why you have an interest in me? Because I have a reputation that you find satisfying? Something that can match yours?" she growled at him.
"No."
"I will be honest with you, Uchiha-san. I am not in the search for a relationship in the moment. I am caught up in my duties as both a shinobi and medic of this village, and I am very happy, might I add, to continue being single and to go along with my daily routine. I do not need a man in my life," Sakura explained.
"I know you're a decent person, Sakura. Do you not believe in giving others a chance?"
Sakura hesitated for a moment, biting her lip before answering truthfully.
"…No. I believe that everyone…deserves one."
She could tell by the way that his eyes sparkled that he was satisfied by her answer.
"Very well then—I expect the same treatment. Is it not unfair for you to treat my differently just because my interest of you is different then what you normally handle?"
"I, w-well, uh…"
Damn him! Now her confidence in her words was wavering, and it was all because everything he said was so very true!
"All I'm asking for is a chance."
He walked away from where he was standing and approached her, and with a tenderness she had never seen before, stroked her cheek with his thumb.
"That is all I'm asking for."
She could feel his warm breath on her cheek, and slowly, unwillingly, a blush appeared across Sakura's face.
A blush that she tried her best to hide—but it was far too late. He had noticed, and she could tell, by the way that he was smirking, that there was no point in trying to hide it now.
"None of my experiences in the life of relationships have been good," she explained. "Though I've never been in one…I have had, of course, my own attractions to men."
More like an attraction to just ONE man.
"I…don't know if I'm ready yet to…engage in one."
Especially since it's to the elder brother of the man I loved so very much.
Of all the things that she thought he might say or do, she did not expect this.
She did not expect his eyes to soften—for his thumb to stroke against her cheek once more—for him to look at her in such a way that made her very heart melt right at that moment.
"You are afraid that I am going to hurt you," he whispered into her ear.
Sakura could not believe what she was hearing.
This was not Uchiha Itachi—this is not the emotionless elder brother of Sasuke—this is not the heir of the Uchiha clan.
She was not supposed to be feeling like this. Her heart was not supposed to be stirring. Her eyes were not supposed to soften.
She was not supposed to be slowly leaning into him, slowly opening her chambered heart, slowly…slowly learning to trust him.
"I don't think you'll hurt me…I know you will," she replied gently, looking at him with eyes that he immediately knew were filled with the reminder of her past hurt.
"All I want is a chance, Sakura," he softly said, coaxing her into his arms. She leaned into his standing figure.
"Can you trust me?" he asked.
"What?"
This is not what she had been expecting him to ask.
"I said, can you trust me?"
"I…I-I don't k-"
"It's a simple yes or no question, Sakura. Yes or no?"
Surprisingly enough, despite the fact that this was their first encounter, she found herself opening up to him, found herself wanting to give him a chance, finding herself slowly feeling that she could trust him.
She only hoped that her instincts were not going to hurt her in the end.
"Yes...," she breathed.
"Very well."
And with that, he leaned into her…and did the unthinkable.
He sealed his lips with hers, taking along with it her very first kiss.
His eyes glistened with a determination and promise to protect her at all costs.
"I am going to be staying with you for a very, very long time, Sakura."
And for once in her life, Sakura welcomed it.
Well, I hoped you like it! This is the first part in a three-shot series that I'm going to do, so you can expect an update from me in a couple of days. Also, keep in mind that the third and last installment of this series is going to be rated M because of the lemon that will be included.
Please leave a review! Things like that keep this author goin'.
- ItachixSakura Forever