Dying Valentine

"Tell her before it's too late. She might get over you, and find someone better," I heard a triumphant voice as I strolled by the alley at dawn.

It was already 7.18am and I was running late. If I knew there would be some old lady around giving fortunes, I would have taken another short cut to school. Usually though, there wouldn't be some old lady doing her fortunes up so early but I didn't want to comment on her strange behavior and decided to ignore her presence. However...

"Young man," I heard her voice once again, "three coins please."

Three coins? Did she refer accounting of money in the old century?

I tried not to bother and got myself continuing down the path. I'll definitely turn up late if I stop now. I can't waste another minute.

"Young man, PAY UP!" I heard her snap. I turned around and saw her crooked smile. She was definitely aging by the wrinkles appearing at the edges of her lips. She stretched out her trembling hand, as if to receive money from me.

"I didn't ask you for a fortune," I affirmed to her as I shot her a glare. She was no way taller than me and I knew she wouldn't be able to stand the feeling of being towered by me. But if she was losing self confidence, she didn't show it.

"But, I told you your fortune. That counts as something," she held out her hand towards me once again.

How irritating.

"What is three coins to you then?" I gave in, not wanting her to annoy me any further with her presence.

"Three thousand dollars."

"What!"

"I was joking around, kid. An old lady needs some fun sometimes."

Not wanting to hang around further, I quickly spun around away from her and started advancing. However, she called out to me once again.

"Young man, is there a girl with pink hair in your class?"

I ceased myself before the old hag continued.

"You might die because of her."

WHAT? Now this hag must be mentally challenged. She kept laughing -which I had assumed that it sounded like a evil laugh, when I resumed to traveling ahead.

For the first time since I had entered high school , I was late for class.

When I walked into the classroom, it suddenly turned silent. The whole class had their eyes on me until Naruto happened. Breaking the silence, Naruto started teasing me.

"This is a first, Teme! Did you get caught up by a bunch of girls?" I heard the dope snicker.

I caught Sakura staring at me from the corner of the class. She had a troubled expression before she looked away. But each time I found her eyes directing at me, I found myself recalling the old hag's victorious voice coming back to my mind.

Her (evil) fortune comes to mind:

Tell her before it's too late. She might be over you, and find someone better..

Did she refer "she" to Sakura? It must be some kind of weird guess she had or some crap she made up. But it surprised me that she asked about "a girl with pink hair in my class". There is only one girl I know of with such an appearance.

Sakura...

She was the girl I spoke to about anything but important and never did Sakura approached me -even if she was observing me for quite a while now, unless it was something to do with homework. I only did remember being in the same group for projects with her and being in a pair for Volleyball practice during physical education. We didn't come into any intimate contact. So, why would she come to love me? She didn't give me a fan girly attitude so...

Did she really love me?

"Teme, what's been bothering you? You look glum the whole day. Oh wait, that's how you normally look," I heard Naruto's voice from my side before he shoved a bunch of letters onto my table. It was mostly in red envelopes and some were scented with a tinge of chocolate.

"What are those?" I glared at them before glaring at Naruto.

"Duh, your fan mail. Have you forgotten? It's Valentines day," he rolled his eyes before he chomped onto the bread he had stolen from Kiba, "I received an obligatory chocolate from a certain girl."

Naruto started messing around but he left soon after.

But, It didn't come down to me that it was those stupid dates I have been dreading. I hated today, especially today.

However, somewhere in the back of my mind, I wondered if Sakura had been planing to give me something this valentines day.

Oh! This explains the glance she gave me. Maybe she was planning to give me chocolate today. Figured.

Or maybe not.

"I think I give up," I heard her say as I pass by her locker down the corridors, "I don't know. I just give up."

Maybe it referred to the fortune that hag supposedly had told me: "she might be over you..."

Did Sakura really love me?

I realized I had grabbed her by the arm and away from whoever she was talking to. Dragging her away from the corridors, up the stairs and finally at the end of the rooftop, I realized she didn't utter a word.

I found that she had her eyes wide open once I turned to face her. Her eyes glowed emerald before I stared down at the cold concrete floor of the rooftop.

"What do you mean by 'give up'?" I heard myself say. I was hoping I would get back to my cool and collected self once again but my curiosity had gotten the best out of me.

Oh. Curiosity killed the cat, didn't it?

"Sasuke?"

"Just tell me, what is it that you were going to give up on?" I found myself holding onto her shoulders, putting so much weight on her. I wonder how she could withstand this.

"Oh, 'that!'," I heard her say, and it confused me that she could say it with such a calm voice, as if she could give up on me so fast.

Did she really loved me?

"That?"

"Yeah. I was planning to drop Art. It wasn't my thing from the start."

"Oh."

I give up. She's too much for me.

I stumbled down to the floor as if all my energy had ran out. I rested my forehead on the palm of my hand before I took a glimpse up her face.

The wind had whipped her hair away from her face, revealing her puzzled expression.

"Kawaii."

Her eyes had gotten wider before she bent down to my level to stare back at my eyes.

Her eyes, it felt as if I could get lost each time I looked straight at them.

"What did you say ?" she had her hands clutched to her knees and her eyes were full of bewilderment. I didn't want to say it again. I didn't want to feel so raw.

As if she knew what I was feeling, she rested herself against my shoulder and spoke, "Don't worry. Hearing it once has made my heart raise."

Once I had heard her voice, I smiled to myself. I looked up, catching a glimpse at her rosy cheeks.

She definitely was Kawaii.

"Sakura," I motioned my hand and she cupped her hand in a "C" near her ears, closing the distance between my lips and her head;

"I love you."

She took a glance at my eyes before she had a smile at her face.
I knew I felt like dying then.

Stupid old hag, she was right but...

This a different type of death. A better one.