Sakura sighed as she drove home, turning down the song on the radio. It was Sasuke Uchiha's newest hit, the angsty one about the boy whose brother had murdered his family and was now hell bent on revenge. It brought her to tears every time she heard it because the emotions were so real, so raw and his voice just broke her. It was a gift, the way he could use a song to move people the way he did. It was one of the reasons he was the most popular artist at the moment. That and his unparalleled good looks.
She sighed again as she turned down their street and the song finally came to its gut wrenching end. All his songs were like this, heartbreaking and true and she knew they were based off of real life, that the emotions behind each song were his real emotions. She pulled into the driveway with the same battle as always raging in her head. She was slow as she made her way inside and the melancholy sounds of a piano wafted against her as she opened the door. She followed it, drawn to him as she always was, the floor cold against her bare feet. She was silent as she crept to his studio and there he was and he was as hauntingly beautiful as the music he played and she could feel tears prickling at her eyes.
She moved behind him, wrapping her arms around his chest, pressing her lips to his hair. He froze and she breathed him in, trying in vain to blink away her tears. She knew how hurt he was, knew all the rage and pain he kept bottled up, only letting it out through his music and once again, the words she'd meant to say stuck in her throat.
"Hi," she managed to whisper instead and he turned, pulling her to sit facing him on the bench. Their knees touched and he twined their fingers and she tried to find her courage. He was watching her, eyes so, so dark and she moved a hand to trail against his cheek.
"I heard your song on the radio." Her voice wavered and he nodded and waited, knowing she had more to say. She licked her lips and she could swear he squeezed her hand in encouragement, so she plowed ahead.
"I love it, the same way I always love your music. But I was just wondering, if maybe it was time...time you wrote something happy for a change." It hung there between them in a silence that seemed to ache and her throat was so dry she wasn't sure she could breathe. He blinked at her slowly and she hurried to explain.
"I know why you write the songs you do, I understand, I really do. But I think that maybe, the best way to move on is to stop dwelling on the pain of the past and focus on the good things you have now." The silence was deafening and her heart was pounding so hard it hurt. He dropped her hand and she could see a shadow cross his eyes. He turned back to the piano and his fingers moved across the keys and she sat there, ignored, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. She blinked to stop them and wondered what to do next.
"I write about what's important to me." He said, voice cold and she could feel her heart snap in her chest. She opened her mouth but no words came out and she stood on shaky legs, not even bothering to hide her tears. She started to stumble away when his voice called her back.
"Sakura." She stopped and turned to him and he stood. He came towards her slowly, as if expecting her to move away. She didn't, even though a part of her said she should. He stopped in front of her and she could see the hesitation in his eyes. He brought his hand up as if to cup her cheek but stopped part way there and his hand simply hung in the air between them. Her lips parted, not that she knew what she would say when he dropped his hand and wrapped his fingers around hers. The contact made her shiver and she watched him in confusion. He gave her hand a gentle tug and she understood it as him asking her to follow him.
She nodded and allowed him to lead her through the halls, wondering all the while what he was doing, seeing as he had all but admitted that she and them wasn't all that important to him. They came to a stop in front of one the spare rooms she never ventured into and she looked at him out of the corner of her eye. He pushed open the door and she was caught in surprise.
There was paper everywhere, stacks of it and the room seemed to be drowning in it. She moved forward cautiously and picked up the nearest sheet and peered at it. It was music, she realized, and she looked closer, examining the lyrics and her heart stopped in her chest. She grabbed another sheet and another, reading each one and they all carried the same message, the same theme.
They were love songs.
"I write about what's important to me." She turned in shock, eyes wide and Sasuke stood in the doorway. He came towards her and this time he didn't hesitate but cupped her cheek gently.
"I write about what's important to me," he repeated. "And nothing is more important to me than you." Her eyes shot wide and she stared at him in disbelief. A tear rolled down her cheek and he brushed it away with his thumb.
"I've been writing these since the day we met." Her mouth popped opened and she could almost swear he was nervous.
"It's easy being angry," he said, looking away from her, "It's easy writing about being angry and it's easy telling the world that I am," He paused and she could feel her heart rising. "But love's never been that easy." She moved closer and wrapped her arms around his waist.
"Sasuke..." He looked deep into her eyes.
"I have been writing happy songs. I've just never let anyone hear them because..." She could just make out the embarrassment he was trying to cover, "...feelings have never been my strong suit." She reached up and turned his face towards hers. He was trying to maintain his cool front but failing and she smiled warmly. She stood up on her tip toes and kissed him, tightening her arms around his waist. He kissed her back and she lost herself in everything Sasuke.
"Sasuke, I don't need to hear love songs on the radio. All I want is for you to be happy. That's why I was worried, because I was afraid that you were letting the past make you miserable," He looked into her eyes and she squeezed his middle, "You don't have to let anyone see these songs, it's enough that you write them." He caressed her cheek with a smirk.
"Maybe I want the world to hear them." One of her eyebrows rose.
"I'm Sasuke Uchiha, I'm not afraid of anything," His voice softened then and she could feel her heart hammering, "Especially not telling the world I love you." She smiled, tears welling and leaned up to kiss him again.
"Love you too." She beamed and she doesn't think she's ever seen him this happy and this, she thinks, this is what love songs are made of.