Hey all! I have the special power to disappear every now and then, but I'm back with this little gem to keep you occupied for a little while. :)
Disclaimer: I own nothing to do with Naruto. My imagination isn't that good.
Summary: Once upon a time, he was hers, and she was his. But this was real life, and there was no 'happily ever after' for them. SasuSaku AU
Enjoy!
Letting Go.
Sasuke Uchiha was a man of many things.
He was smart. Rich. Handsome. Loved by many.
But in no way was he ready to witness this.
He thought it didn't matter any more. He thought nothing mattered any more.
Yet, here he was, and despite everything in his being telling him to ignore it, he knew he cared about what was before him.
He couldn't hear the conversation between them – thankfully he wasn't that close – but the expressions she wore on her face told him all he needed to know. The way her eyes sparkled. The way her shoulders shook as she laughed. The way her hair bounced enthusiastically.
Happiness.
He wasn't sure what hurt the most. The fact that she was happy, or the fact that she was happy without him. Of course, he would never, ever express his hurt to anyone, not even to his best and closest friend Naruto, and with a sharp pang in his chest, realised that it was his lack of emotion that was the reason she was no longer in his life.
He almost remembered a time when she was happy with him. At the start, when everything seemed so perfect. So right. She brought so much out in him; made him smile, made him laugh, hell, she even made him take part in conversations without even realising. He vaguely remembered holding her in his arms at night, watching her sleep like – no, because – she was the most interesting thing in the world. How the corners of her rosy lips would turn upwards softly as his arm snaked around her petite waist. He was hers. She was his. Life couldn't be simpler.
Then, the hardships came. He returned from work later than he used to, usually finding her already asleep, a frown etched on her face from the hours she stayed awake waiting. They would fight – usually about small, insignificant things ('It wasn't my turn to take the garbage out! I have other things to do, Sasuke!'), but occasionally it would be about something more significant ('It's like you don't even care any more! Have I done something wrong?') and his use of vocabulary had dwindled down to mere syllables. But of course, the things he remembered the most were the worst. The way her eyes dulled. The way her shoulders shook as she cried. The way her hair fell limp across her shoulders.
Sadness.
He should've seen their breakup coming. It was painfully inevitable. The final time she shut the front door meant the end of so many things. The end of a relationship, an era, a life.
To say he was affected by it was a strong understatement. A large amount of his free time was spent in his house (no longer a home since she had moved out) just sitting, staring at the empty spaces where her overwhelming yet comforting amount of photos used to be. The only reason he was out of the house at this point in time was because his idiot of a best friend had practically forced him out. ("Teme, if you don't come outside, I will force feed you ramen until it comes out of your nose."), and look what had happened. Out of all the places in all of Konoha, Naruto just had to pick the one place that contained his best dream and worst nightmare all wrapped in one small body.
Naruto had long since buggered off to Kami knows where, and at that moment Sasuke didn't care. He clutched the glass in his hand like what was left of his life depended on it and continued to stare at her. The happy, smiling, fun-to-be-around version of her that had left him long before the she walked out the door.
She laughed again. The guy she was with was obviously funny. An attribute lost on him. But as much as he wanted to hate the male who had quite clearly taken the broken pieces of her heart and rebuilt it, he felt content to know that she was in good hands. It had been a few months (with all the days merging into one, he had lost count how many exactly) since their relationship came to an end, and with no proof of her existence until this very moment, he could safely say that, as unexpected as it was, he felt a little better knowing that she had taken her life back and found someone new.
Finally gaining the strength to tear his onyx orbs away from the scene, Sasuke stood up, the glass in front of him left empty on the counter, and walked out, ignoring the calls from Naruto, who apparently hadn't even noticed the reason of Sasuke's departure.
The chill of the winter air bit him harshly as the door swung shut behind him. He wasn't ready to see her again. He wasn't ready to carry on living without her in his life. He wanted to be happy that she was happy, but he just couldn't. He couldn't pretend that he was okay, when he most definitely was not. He first thought that since it had been months since he last saw her, he would be fine. He wouldn't feel a thing, the way he was before he met her. He had never been so wrong.
"Sasuke?"
Said man froze to the spot, and the weather felt like summer in comparison to the coldness he felt now.
He didn't want to turn around. He could barely bring himself to. But the sound of her melodic voice would always have an effect on him. It was like she was a magnet, automatically drawing him in with her voice, her actions, her looks … and it wasn't fair.
Still, he spun around slowly, allowing as much time as possible before he had to look her in the eye, something he hadn't even done towards the end of their relationship. A thousand warning sirens played in his head, but he chose to ignore them as his eyes finally met with hers.
She looked as breathtaking as always, even in dark jeans and a fitted t-shirt, she was the kind of girl that had the ability to look gorgeous without even trying. Her eyes told him everything he didn't want to know. She was happy and she was free. Without him. He was always able to read her like an open book, and he wanted nothing more than to close it and turn away. But he couldn't.
He'd been a coward up until this point. He couldn't run away any more.
"How are you?"
Her voice still captivated him in a way he never used to think possible, and he knew it was his turn to finally speak.
I'm terrible. I'm hopeless. I'm lost without you. "I'm good. You?"
"I'm good. I'm really good. Thanks."
The lack of hesitation as she spoke hurt him more than it should have. But he refused to let any pain show on his face. He couldn't show her how much she still affected him. It would only make her feel bad again.
"What have you been doing lately?"
Waiting for you to come back. Lying to myself that things can get better. "Not much. You?"
She smiled sadly, as if she knew something he didn't, "Not a great deal I suppose. I saw you when you left – well, actually I heard Naruto yelling at you. I didn't notice you guys were in there. I would've say hi…"
She was nervous. He could tell, as she continued to babble about nothing in particular. He couldn't help but be a little satisfied that this encounter was uncomfortable for her too. It meant that she wasn't completely over their relationship, even if she had moved on with someone new.
"… but anyway. It's really good to see you again."
This is killing me. "Yeah."
She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, and up close he noticed that it had grown quite a lot since the last time her saw her. It suited her like that.
"Look, Sasuke … I'm sorry that I left the way I did …"
This time, Sasuke didn't hide the shock from his face. After everything he put her through, and she was apologising? For being strong enough to get out?
It was amazing how she still found new ways to completely throw him off track.
"We were having a tough time in our relationship, and I was angry, and we both said and did things that I'm sure we both regret, and I walked out without really thinking. We didn't get to have any closure or whatever, but I was hurt and it was tough and -"
"You don't have to apologise."
She stopped talking abruptly and stared at him. He took a deep breath. He had to do this. He owed her this much.
"You did nothing wrong. I was an asshole, and a jerk, and, honestly it's a wonder you didn't leave earlier. I didn't treat you the way you should be treated, the way … the way you're being treated now. I'm sorry for everything I put you through. This … this has been killing me for so long … but you're happy now. That's all that matters to me." For the most part.
She smiled sadly once more, tears threatening to fall, and before Sasuke could register what was going on, she pulled him into an embrace. His arms wrapped around her instinctively, missing the feeling of her body in his arms. He breathed her scent in, and revelled in the fact that right here, right now, she was the girl that he had fallen in love with.
She was the first one to let go, his limbs feeling like lead as she untangled herself from the hug, and she took a step backwards.
The door opened, and a man was calling out, but Sasuke wasn't listening. He knew that it would be for her, and knew that this was going to end.
She sniffed and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, chuckling to herself as she did so, "I'm still such a wuss. I gotta go … but this was good. I miss you, Sasuke Uchiha."
Sasuke's voice was caught in his throat as she turned and bounced her way back to the new love of her life, placing her hand in his as she walked back into the building, not once looking back at the mess of a man she left behind.
He could see her through the window, despite how dark and murky the building was, it was like she was illuminated in the crowd, as she walked back to her original spot, her hand never leaving the other man's. All evidence of the sadness she had portrayed to Sasuke had vanished, leaving nothing but a happy smile on her face and a new found closure in her eyes.
Sasuke's eyes softened. She was gone.
"I miss you too, Sakura Haruno."
Nice and depressing ready for Valentines Day. I wouldn't worry, though, I'm writing a little fluffy thing at this moment, too, to balance it out a little. This one-shot is loosely based on the songs 'Standing In The Dark' from Lawson and 'Six Degrees of Separation' from The Script, since they're both awesome songs, and they were on my CD at work, and I thought 'this could make a good thing to write'. As always, I'm not fully satisfied with the way it ended, but hey ho. I'm here to please others, so please let me know if you liked it! I know it's similar to others I've written, but it's just how my mind works. Something else should be uploaded in the upcoming days, but in case I don't, happy Valentines day to y'all, and to my fellow English readers (or whoever else celebrates it) Happy Pancake Day. Hell yeah!
Every time someone favourites/author alerts without reviewing, I die a little inside. It seems every time I mention that, more people favourite without reviewing, but I'll keep saying it. Please review. That helps me. Even if it's just one word. It means more than just a tick in a box. Other writers will agree. Ugh.
So yeah. Over and out! :D
-x-Emma-x-