Title: Liquid Candy
Summary: Summary: Apparently, Sasuke thought sardonically, Sakura was quite fond of picking him up. In which Sakura is smooth and Sasuke is flustered.
x
It was while she was helping him wrap up his feet in bandages one morning, when he noticed that the tips of her ears were a bright red and her mouth was pursed in a way when she was suppressing something she really wanted to say. Curious, and a little intrigued, he casually tucked a few strands of stray hair behind her ear. Surprised, she looked at him.
"What is it?" he asked gently.
She blinked at him a little owlishly and cocked her head to the side. "What is what?"
"You want to say something," he said.
She thought for a second; staring at something over his shoulder. Then, "I do, actually." Then she leaned forward on her feet and fell face first into his chest; he had no choice but to catch her. Baffled, he kept his arms around her and after a moment, tried to pry her away. In turn, her grip around him tightened even more.
"Sasuke-kun?" she mumbled in his chest, then took a deep breath and turned her head to the side so that her head rested on his chest. "I want to live in your socks," she declared.
Unbidden his lips twitched into a smile. He opened his mouth to comment on the absolute absurdity of that statement, when—
"So I can be with you every step of the way," she finished.
His mouth snapped shut. For a few moments, there was only silence and Uchiha Sasuke marveled at the magic that was the woman in his arms. He blinked a few times, to clear his head. Then his arms tightened around her and he buried his head in the crook of her neck.
"Aa."
x
"Hey, Sasuke-kun," she sauntered towards him. Then, casual as a footstep, she pinched his ass. He dropped the dirty plate back in the soapy mess of the kitchen sink in surprise as his head snapped in her direction. Too late, he looked behind to see Sarada smirking at him from the dining table.
Mortified, he gave his wife a flustered glare. "Where are your manners, Mama?" he chided.
Ignoring his mortified glare, she stood on the very tips of her toes and pecked him on the lips. His voice stuck in his throat and he struggled to voice his discomfiture. Taking advantage, she hip-checked him to the side and started on the dishes herself. "You know Papa?" she neatly scrubbed the sponge over the plate, "If you were a tropical fruit, you'd be a Fine-apple." She winked at him.
He sputtered a little, feeling his face heat up. Behind him, Sarada laughed. Gritting his teeth, he held his head high gathering the remnants of his dignity and proceeded to dry the plate Sakura handed him.
x
He was cleaning up the clutter in the living room one day, when he felt her chakra approach from behind. He wasn't surprised when the popped her head in the door and called out a tadaima.
"Okaeri," he said, and bent down to pick up a bunch of books from the coffee table. He wasn't quite expecting his tush to be sharply smacked. He stiffened for a moment, before slowly rising up to face a grinning Sakura.
"Did you sit in a pile of sugar?" she wound her arms around his waist and stepped closer. "'Coz you have a pretty sweet ass," she whispered as she leaned on her toes and kissed the side of his mouth.
He was dazed only for a second before she kissed him sloppily and ran out of the room. He stared after her a moment, face heating up, then went back to work, chalking it up to Sakura's usual brand of crazy affection.
x
He felt her hands glide up his chest and go around his neck, and his heart began to hammer. He kissed her, and as her lips parted beneath his, desire began to heat his blood, and when her tongue crept into his mouth, a jolt went through Sasuke's entire nervous system, exploding his control. He kissed her deeply, his mouth moving with half-fierce, half-gentle urgency, and she moaned, kissing him back with fervor. He tormented her with his tongue, retreating, then thrusting deep until she instinctively responded in the way he wanted.
His hand moved of its own accord, unbuttoning her shirt and unhooking her bra to cup her breasts, his thumb circling her hardened nipples. Under his hands, her breasts came to life, thrilling and warning him at the same time. Her soft moan of pleasure raced through him, throbbing in his ears. He forced his hands away, only to have it slide downward, lightly grazing her flat stomach, then her shapely thigh instinctively seeking the place where, without the barrier of her panties, he could part her thighs and tease her until she was melting with desire. His mouth began to move against hers more urgently, more hungrily and he started to reach under when—
"Sasuke-kun?" she emerged, panting, her breath hot on his lips. "Do you have a map?"
Through the haze of desire, he finally managed to squint at her questioningly.
She laughed, and his heart clenched a little at the undiluted happy it tinkled. "I'm getting lost in your eyes," she whispered, and crashed her mouth to his again.
x
"Oye—teme!"
"What?"
"Pass the soy sauce," Naruto held out his hand. Sasuke held out the bottle nonchalantly. Sakura looked on with a fond expression and Sasuke bit his tongue to resist the urge to preen a little. He noticed Naruto observing smugly from the corner of his eye.
"Usuratonkachi," he tried his best to wither him with a look. Naruto laughed happily and went back to his food. Sasuke shrugged it off and wondered if Sarada was doing alright with Ino.
"Hey, Uchiha?"
Surprised, he turned to Sakura. She was smiling beatifically, and Sasuke was suddenly nervous.
"Your body is 65% water and I'm thirsty," she said casually. Naruto promptly choked on his broth, Kakashi slowly, deliberately, emerged from behind his novel and Sai looked on with the blank curiosity of the socially inept.
"Gross! Eww, Sakura-chan!" Naruto made a face as if he'd consecutively swallowed five citrusy lemons, and pretended to gag.
Sasuke took a deep breath and neatly averted his eyes. He couldn't quite hide the warmth on his neck.
x
She was lying down on the floor with her head in his lap, a sleeping Sarada in her arms as he sat with his back against the sofa, his hands holding a scroll. His lips twitched into s smile as she raised a hand and twined her fingers with his. Sighing softly, he put the scroll down and gave her hand a gentle squeeze.
"Its not my fault I fell in love with you, you know," she smiled at him. "You're the one who tripped me."
He looked her in the eyes for a few seconds. Very deliberate, he bought the back of her hand to his mouth and kissed it.
This time, she was the one who averted her eyes self-consciously.
x
"So, Sasuke-kun,: she said while brushing out her hair. He lay on the bed, forearm covering half his face and made a non committal sound of protest.
He opened his eyes when her side of the bed dipped and she settled herself in the nook of his arm. "What was it like, hitting puberty with Orochimaru?" she asked as she snaked an arm across his middle.
Understanding the implication of her words and to save himself a copious amount of humiliation, he kissed her temple and settled more comfortably into the bed.
"C'mon!" she poked him in the cheek, "Humor me!"
He kept his mouth firmly shut. She tangled her leg with his and kissed the crook of his neck. He shivered. "I bet you were still pretty as hell; no acne, no awkward lanky growth spurts. I bet you were gorgeous as hell even back then."
He made a strangled noise at the back of his throat and turned his head to look at her smiling up at him. "You have unrealistic preconceived notions about me," he stated, perhaps a little snootily and felt his cheeks grow a little warm.
"No," she laughed in his chest. "I remember the tragedy that was your sense of fashion back then."
His mouth curved up. She had a way of flushing his ego and then shooting it down the toilet.
"Sasuke-kun," she whispered. He cocked his head in her direction to listen better. "If beauty were time, you'd be eternity." She touched his face and her words were as gentle as her fingertips.
Not quite knowing what to say, he caught her hand in his and kissed the inside of her palm.
x
It seldom bothered him that she had managed to acquire a solid band admirers over the years. Maybe it was a glitch on his perfectly imperfect radar, maybe he was arrogant; but he knew that when push came to shove, Sakura was—had always been—his endgame.
So the day he saw a stranger touching her hand, he felt an old feeling bubble up in his chest again. A deep-seated burst of anger so pure, his chest felt like it was on fire, a river of lava trudging down his throat, teeth gritting to dust. Before he could even realize what was happening, his body was by her side, his hand on the small of her back—possessive.
She turned to him, surprised. "Lets go," he stated. He couldn't quite meet her eyes.
"I'm in the middle of a conversation, Sasuke-kun," she replied calmly. The distinct lack of an emotion in her voice, on her face should've been his first warning.
"Sarada will be home soon," he said, and without further ado started driving her in the direction of their home. She stumbled, caught herself and he vaguely heard her making an excuse before the blood started roaring in his ears.
He hurried his pace as the house came into view. As soon as they were inside he slammed the door, turned, and backed her up against it. A hand slid into her hair. He fisted the heavy strands and dragged her mouth up to his. The kiss was hot, deep, and thorough, the kind of kiss that made her toes curl up inside her shoes.
Backing up a little, he kissed the side of her neck.
His eyes widened when she shoved him away. "Mind telling me what that was about?" she gritted out.
His eyes glittered hard in the dim light. He took a deep breath. "You—"
"I," she interrupted, "was talking to an old patient."
"He was touching you. Inappropriately." His clipped, disjointed sentences made him angry at himself, and he rubbed a hand across his brow in chafing frustration
There were a few seconds of silence, then, "Do you not trust me, Sasuke-kun?"
"Don't be stupid. It is not you, who I don't trust," he snapped.
Sakura met his dark scowl with a heated glower, but she held her silence, neither yielding nor denying.
"Do I not have a right?" he asked.
And suddenly, her eyes were moist, there was a lump in her throat and before she could stop—before she could speak, tears were falling down her face. "He was thanking me!" she snarled, "For saving his kid's life!"
He inhaled sharply, blinked, closed his eyes for a moment and cursed himself for being an insensitive prick. As she swished past him into the house, he swallowed, made his reluctant feet chase after her—for it had been quite a while since he had chased after something—someone—and not the other way around.
He found her in the kitchen, pulling out vegetables from the fridge. "Sakura," he called. She didn't turn around, instead moving on to the counter.
He let out a breath, felt desperately inadequate. Then he swallowed thickly and remembered all the times she was the one watching his back.
"Sakura," he called again, this time softly. She stilled. He swallowed again, took a deep breath, steeled himself, "Kiss me if I'm wrong, but dinosaurs still exist, right?"
He waited, those few moments unbearable, before he heard the barest tinkle of a laugh. His chest unclenched then, and he let out a sigh of relief, opened his mouth again, "I—apologize."
She turned around then and it eased his heart to see a smile at the corner of her mouth. "You are wrong, Sasuke-kun. Dinosaurs do not exist."
He won a private battle not to smile. "Aa."
"Dork," she said affectionately.
Then he came toward her, tilted her face up with his finger under her chin, and brushed his lips against hers.
Her arms came up, circled his neck. Her body went pliant as he gathered her closer. The muscles he stroked, kneaded and began to relax under his hands.
That was how Sarada found her parents as she returned home a few minute later.
x
They were sitting on the porch of their home, shoulder to shoulder, watching the small home garden with its very own vegetable patch and grass so fresh it looked rather like a spot of refreshingly green carpet.
He looked at the sky, the tiny pinpricks of birds and relished the warm sunlight, when he felt her gaze on him. He turned to her and gave a questioning look. She leaned forward, her viridian eyes asparkle, and spoke as if confiding a deep dark secret, "You're pretty, and I'm cute. So together we're Pretty Cute."
He looked at her for an infinite moment, and then, pressing a warm kiss upon her knuckles he drew her arm around his neck, then his mouth dipped down to hers. It was a teasing kiss, brief and light, his tongue leisurely tracing the contours of her lips. His warm breath touched her ear, and his teeth nibbled at the base of her neck, sending delicious shivers through her. She closed her eyes, relaxing in his arms, growing warm and pliant.
As he came up for air, she leaned forward and pressed her lips to his ear. "Was that an earthquake or did you just rock my world?"
He kissed her again, more gently now, more of an erotic tasting. Sakura gave a little sigh of pleasure and kissed him the same way, tightening her arms around his neck, running her fingers through his thick dark hair.
x
Sasuke knew he would never ever understand women. They could pour boiling hot wax on their skin and rip out their hair from root, but were afraid of a cockroach
"Kill it!" she yelled from across the room. Sasuke sighed and calmly turned a page in the book he was trying to read. "Kill it yourself."
"Are you trying to bring my home down with an infestation, Uchiha!" she hissed—albeit loudly enough so that he could hear her from across the room.
"It is my home too, Sakura," he replied serenely.
"Then KILL it! Or I swear to Kami I will end you!"
He gave her an irritated look. "Don't be annoying, Sakura."
"YOUR FACE is annoying!"
He gave her a hard look. "Are you menstruating?"
As soon as the words left his lips, Sasuke had the distinct feeling that he'd just foolishly stirred a volcano and was about to see it irrupt in his face. On another day he would decide this had only been a warning whiff of smoke.
She regally rose out of her little corner and faced him with blazing eyes. "God Sasuke-kun, way to be a little shit!" she snapped. "I hope to kami that someday YOU have to bleed from YOUR private bits and stick a wad of cotton in there!" then she stomped out of the room, seeming to have forgotten the tiny cockroach scurrying around her pristine kitchen. In the doorway she stopped, turned around, "Also I hope that you trip and fall head first into a gutter on some dark night."
Stunned speechless and more than a little disturbed, he reluctantly followed her into the living room. She was sitting on the edge of the couch, looking pissed off and a little weepy. And, he thought wryly, she was probably considering how well she might enjoy swinging a heavy boot against his 'pretty' face. He went and sat beside her. She turned in the other direction. He took a huge breath, let it out, "I apologize," he mumbled, looking everywhere but at her form.
After a moment he heard an exasperated hmph and felt her flop in his lap. Startled, he put a hand on her back and she sighed. "It's like a tractor plowing through your womb every month," she mumbled miserably.
"You are very brave." Sasuke caught her fingers and pressed them against his lips.
"I'm old and ugly," she despaired. "Just yesterday I ate a whole vat of ice-cream. Do you KNOW how many calories that thing has? I'm such a fatty!"
He rubbed soothing circles across her back and desperately wracked his brain for something to cheer her up with. He fought a bubble of panic and steeled himself against what he was about to do. Slowly, awkwardly, he turned his head to the side, arranged his face in a spectacularly pained expression and mumbled, "If you were a laser, you'd be set on stunning."
As soon as his words sank in, she promptly sat up, looked at him for a long moment, then flopped onto his chest. "I don't know if I should laugh or make fun of you for knowing something so lame."
His teeth unclenched when he heard the smile in her voice. "You say stuff like this all the time."
"Yes, but I'm cool so I can pull it off," she said. "By the way, I love you," she added casually. Her head was on his shoulder; her arms linked around his waist. Sasuke rested his cheek against the softly flowing pink tresses as Sakura nuzzled her face against his throat.
x
He was finishing off his onigiri when she suddenly decided to pounce on him and pepper his face with kisses—a kiss on the mouth, a kiss on each cheek, a kiss on the nose, his temple, his forehead, his jaw and a sloppy one on his mouth again. All the while he barely managed to keep both of them upright. When she finally pulled back, he gave her a quizzical look. She laughed and kissed him on the mouth again—this time, she kissed him leisurely, like she had all the time in the world, and he felt warmth filling up his chest, up his neck, clogging his throat with love, when suddenly pulled away and pecked him on the nose again.
"What—" he started, and she cut him off with another kiss.
"Nothing," she breathed when she pulled back again. "Just remembered this time when I saw you eating onigiri when we were kids. You were so cute, Sasuke-kun!" she gushed, then wound her arms around his head and kissed him again.
His face warmed up and he averted his eyes when she tried to catch him. "Hey," she cupped his cheek, wound her legs around his waist and let him carry most of her weight. When she finally managed to catch his eye, she kissed him on the cheek, "I love you, Sasuke-kun," she said, eyes bright, "even though you're a moody ass, most of the time."
x
fin