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Chapter 1: The Day I Met Him
You control your life. I've always believed that no matter what. The day my parents died I decided I wouldn't cry. I would get over it and move on. The day they died, I was only four. I'm not sure how I remember my own decision or how I came to think that way at such a young age, but I know it kept me going. It kept me from falling apart. I made the choice to have good grades and to have lots of friends. I always broke up with my boyfriends and I was always the one to accept their confessions. I chose to live alone, I chose to keep to myself. I chose to be strong. All that time, I had been making my own decisions; making my own way in life. And then I met him. His name was Sasuke Uchiha and he came into my life as swiftly and suddenly as a gust of wind. It was he that changed my philosophy. He made me rethink myself. This is how I came to know him. How he turned my world upside down.
It was raining the night I met him, lying against the brick wall in a dark alley. He had cuts all over, blue and purple bruises blooming on his pale skin. His head was slung loosely forward as if he were asleep. He wasn't. I had just been walking by, going home from work that day. I had homework left to do, but I couldn't help it. I stopped and stared, people rushing by in the late hour, the city lights of Tokyo were multicolored and bright, cars rushed by, and yet none of this seemed to touch him as he sat there. So, cautiously, I walked over to take a look and knelt down beside him, shielding him from the rain with my umbrella. His breathing was shallow and his eyes were closed. Dark hair clung to his face from the wetness and there was a cut on his lip, a small trickle of blood running down to his chin. Slowly, very slowly, my hand came up to wipe away that blood. His skin was so soft under the pad of my thumb, but maybe it was just the water. Maybe, but what about the coldness of it? That couldn't just be the rain. My hand froze.
Now, you have to understand what would have happened if I had just left him there. He would have gotten colder and colder and died of the hypothermia he was inevitably developing. I couldn't let that happen. I couldn't let someone die when there was some way for me to help. I had to save him. There was no other choice. So I closed my umbrella, attached it to my belt and heaved him onto my back. He was so heavy that I immediately heard the whistle of air leave my lungs in the effort to keep up on my feet. I raised a hand at the oncoming traffic, waving down taxies. None of them were vacant. So I struggled down two blocks of downtown Tokyo and walked up to my apartment complex all wet, carrying a dying man on me. The landlady only smiled in my direction, nodding.
"I'll bring up some medicine for him a little later, Haruno-san."
"Ugh! Th-thank you….Granny Chiyo."
I trudged up the stairs, breathing hard. I was starting to feel cold on the inside too. Is that how he feels now? How he felt before he fell unconscious? Huh, what an unsettling feeling it is. It's like you're empty… I set him against the wall next to my apartment and fumbled for my keys, opening the door. Keeping it wide with my foot, I took his wrists and dragged him the rest of the way into my small two room house. The door closed and I let his arms fall. He was still knocked out, no surprise there, but he seemed to be colder. Was that even possible? I ran over to the closet and pulled out two fleece blankets, then draped them over his body. Scurrying over to the cabinets, I pulled out a strip of clothe, soaked it in warm water and quickly placed it on his forehead. I watched his chest rise and fall. His breathing was slow. I put two fingers over the radial pulse on his wrist. Heart rate was slow too. 'Crap.' I didn't know what to do for him. I'd never learned the treatments for hypothermia before in my life! So I did the only thing that came to mind. Look it up on the internet. Of course.
Scanning pages of information, I finally reached treatment and my jaw fell open. I scanned it again.
Insulate from ground – pine branches, leaves, moss, anything to provide insulation will work.
Change wet clothing for windproof, waterproof gear
Add heat – if safe, start a fire
Increase exercise, if possible
Get into a pre-warmed sleeping bag or blankets
Drink hot drinks, followed by candy or other high-sugar foods
Apply heat to neck, armpits and groin
And groin...and groin…AND GROIN!? I could do the rest, but I'm pretty sure I'd have some problems with warming his groin… groin… ugh, I couldn't get it out of my head. I wearily glanced over at him, his angular face, his beaten body. I couldn't let this guy die. I had to help him. It was the least I could do. So, I rummaged through the piles of towels, jeans, sweaters, raincoats and finally found what I was looking for. The electric blanket. As fast as I could, I plugged it in and hurried over to his immobile figure with it. I snapped it out and let it flutter over him. I could feel the heat of it traveling through my hands and up my thin arms. Then I just sat there with my legs pulled up to my chest, arms around them to hold them in place. My chin rested on a knee and I observed him with jade eyes, long lashes, pink hair stuck to my face.
"Ah-CHOO! Ugh."
Getting up, I walked over to the island kitchen, grabbed the kettle, stuck it under the faucet and let the water fill it up. Plugging it into the wall outlet, I set it on the stove and went into my second room to change into dry clothing. Books and magazines were piled high, a desk was hardly visible under all the papers, binders and all around clutter. Clothing was folded and stacked, making it hard to navigate around the room. Boxes held other belongings, reached the ceiling in their abundance. I guess my home was the typical Japanese apartment.
Fighting through the mess, I managed to find a pair of worn out jeans and a simple tank top. I changed quickly, my mind constantly thinking of how embarrassing it would be if hypothermia boy happened to wake up and walk in on me changing… Ha ha ha ha… How funny would that be? Not very. I slipped the pants button through the slit and quickly zipped up the fly as I heard the kettle sound off, signaling that the water was boiling. Rushing through the mess again, I pulled it out of the outlet and took a mug from the cabinets. Placing it on the counter, I opened another cabinet and found some Green Herbal Tea and put the packet in my mug. Slowly, I poured the hot water, careful not to spill. Satisfied, I added three spoonfuls of sugar and stirred, happy with my tea. I heard a groan and then a knock. The boy hadn't woken up yet, but at least I knew he wasn't dead. Walking over to the door, I saw Granny Chiyo with a bowl of soup and some medicine.
"Ah! Thank you Granny Chiyo!" She smiled, almost wry.
"Not a problem dear, but if he dies, it's not my fault."
"Heh… Thanks." Closing the door, I took the soup and medicine, and placed them on the counter. I could sense the boy shift and heard him groan again. I knelt beside him and watched him. He didn't look so pale anymore, though his skin was very fair. He really was a very handsome guy. His raven hair had fallen, exposing the small silver loop earring in his lobe. His lashes left a dark slash against the porcelain, like a raven on snow. How pretty. Reaching out a hand, I brushed his cheek and found that his temperature had gone up.
"Thank god," I whispered. "You're going to live." My eyes felt itchy, so I rubbed them. My head felt heavy and soon I could feel the electric blanket against my skin, warming me. Lids drooping closed, my mind fell blank and soon I had drifted off into the sweet solitude of sleep.
I heard voices. I blinked slowly and found that the lights were out. I moved. The voices were still there. For some reason, something felt like it was missing. Realization hit me as my hands grabbed at the sheets. They weren't heated anymore. The door opened and closed. Someone had come in. The voices had stopped. I looked up, unable to make out the tall silhouette. The person came to me and suddenly I felt hot lips against mine. They were so soft, so inviting and so skilled. A blissful heat began to pulse through me, setting my cheeks aflame. My eyes fluttered closed again and I felt myself being lowered. I now knew it was a man, as I felt his arousal against me. It seemed to be throbbing, matching the sudden ache in my lower half. His mouth moved feverishly against mine, sucking, biting, bruising. A rough hand slid up the side of my torso, and I immediately shoved him away, my senses coming back to me. He moved back a bit and watched as I sat up again, attempting to wipe away his kiss with my arm. He chuckled, low, seductive. My head whipped towards him.
"You think this is funny? Who the hell are you anyways!?" My anger was now inching away the pleasant feeling. Burning. I could sufficiently see at this point, my eyes having finally adjusted to the light. He didn't smile, only smirked. It felt so condescending.
"You saved my life. I'm repaying you." He raised a perfectly arched dark eyebrow. "Unhappy?"
I groaned. "Of course I'm unhappy! Why would I be happy about some random guy trying to repay me with his body!?"
"Hn."
"Oh, shut up."
"Hn."
I was seething. Stupid jerk! How could he do that!? "Why don't you go home now that you're better?" I snapped at him, arms crossed against my chest.
"No home."
…
"Really?"
"Hn."
"Don't ever say that again."
"Hn."
I gave him a sharp look. So, he needed a place to stay. Well, I didn't like him, but understand that I couldn't let him go out and get hypothermia again! He needed my help, even if he didn't ask for it. Not really anyway. I'd feel guilty if I didn't let him stay.
Oh woe is me and my big stinking conscience.
"Ugh! You know what? You can stay here until you get your own home, okay?"
He didn't seem to have any reaction at all. What was this guy, a robot? Finally, he shrugged, uncaring. Maybe he wanted to get hypothermia…
"I refuse to live here for free."
"Okay. Then you can repay me. It's settled. By the way, what's your name?"
"Uchiha, Sasuke."
"Mine's Haruno, Sakura. Tell you the truth, it hasn't been all that nice to meet you." I mustered up the best smile I could and held out my hand. He didn't take it. Awkward.
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