I haven't written in a while, so I apologize if this sucks. :[

Merry late Christmas And Happy New Year!!! :D

And I don't own Naruto because Masashi Kishimoto won't sell it to me…I offered him five dollars!!!

(this story is written in Ino's pov)

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Nobody really knew how or even why Sasuke was Santa .His hat was slumped messily on the top of his head and he was way too skinny to be a Santa. It was obviously Naruto's fault somehow. It was funny though. Some kids asked their parents why Santa had black hair instead of white and why he didn't have a beard. Of course Sasuke refused to wear the long white curly wig and matching beard simply because he didn't like it. Either way, I had to sit and wait for his shift to be over.

He hated it. He hated it because of course he's Sasuke and apparently he's too cool for stuff like that.

I sat and watched him. He sat on his little Santa chair in front of Macy's. A line of kids waiting. He glanced at me from time to time, the scowl on his face was obvious. He would mouth things like 'help me' but I wouldn't because that stupid Uchiha deserved it. Always picking on me and calling me a pig because I eat a bit faster than he does. Well maybe he would eat at my speed if he didn't sit and stir and watch his food for hours before eating it.

"Mommmmmmmmmmmmy!!!! Nooooo!!!! Santa's a meanyyyy!!!"

A little boy cried as his mother tried to comfort him. Sasuke looked at the boy. He wasn't going to apologize. The mother looked at Sasuke, waiting for an apology. As if the mother heard clearly what Sasuke was thinking she yelled "Apologize! Now!"

And Sasuke,being Sasuke,looked at the woman. He stared at her for a second. "No" is what finally came from his lips. I carefully watched his lips as he said that simple word. The woman repeated what she said again causing the manager of Macy's to come out to the scene and just like that Sasuke was out of a job again.

He trudged over to me. The Santa attraction was in the middle of the mall, so not only did I just see him get fired. In his mind the whole world saw."Yamanaka…whore." That's why he got fired from Foot Locker, McDonalds, Starbucks, Seven Eleven, JC Penny's, Best Buy, GameStop, Petco, Target twice, Wal-Mart, Taco Bell, and now Macy's in less than a year.

"Fired again?" I smiled back. "I'm not your whore so you can't call me one…"I played in my hair a bit waiting his response.

"Actually you are…."

I looked at him.

"Damn"He realized his mistake.

"That's a hug and smile!.....or you could give me something good." I smiled at him. I knew that the Uchiha had to have hormones and every time he says something that proves my point I win. I know…..I know….. It childish but oh so fun.

"A drink right?" He stared at me blankly. He knew what I really wanted but he played dumb. I played along though.

"Mmmm Hm" I smiled back, nodding my head. A shade of pink for a second- maybe not even that long- dusted Sasuke's cheeks. My grin widened.

"So what do you want….?" He asked. He gave me a strange look as I just sat on the bench and smiled at him. He had no clue that he just let some color sneak onto his cheeks. There was no way I was going to let him live that down.

"Sassukkkkeee….." His eyes widened. He was a bit more than surprised. I stood up and hugged him. He pushed back a bit. His face matched the color of the Santa suit he was wearing.

"I said I was going to get you a drink….." He mumbled and I squeezed him tighter. He didn't really hug back because….well….Sasuke was Sasuke- end of story.

"Ino!!!!" I turned back still hugging Sasuke. He was kind of sweating now but anyway Naruto was there. He was smiling at me in all his blonde glory walking out of Hot Topic. A store that really doesn't suit him. He actually made me feel dressed up by wearing a simple pair of jeans and a black jacket. Whilst I was wearing a red jacket and a mini skirt with tights underneath that matched the scarf I was wearing.

"Hey Naruto" I greeted. I was happy to see him after what happened at that ice cream place. He beamed back. His smile almost made the seasons change from winter to summer.

"I was wondering if you co…."

I'm guessing he took sight of the Sasuke that was in my arms. He looked at him , not recognizing who he was. He looked like a giant red thing with white fur actually. I kind of couldn't tell if I was hugging Sasuke anymore.

"I knew it!!!!!" Naruto suddenly exclaimed. The shock caused me to stop hugging my Sasuke. " You are cheating on Sasuke! I knew it! You two don't even act like boyfriend-girlfriend! No wonder you two haven't kissed! I was right!" Naruto continued making his accusations for a good minute or two. "Really Ino? With this thing? Why?! I mean Sasuke… Ino!"

Sasuke stared at him. " I am Sasuke" I giggled at my -yeah- boyfriend and his best friend as they both simply stared at one another. It was like they were having their own conversation without words. Naruto's expression was a smile, a confused look, or that other stuck to looks that read off as 'are you stupid?' or '(insert sigh here) no'. Sometimes you could even see the word pervert written across his face.

Naruto laughed loudly. " So Ino I was going to ask if you could tell me if….on second thought never mind. Hey does Sakura like Hot Topic because she told me she went in there one time and got some panties and stuff…."

I stared at him. "Sakura likes that store beside Hot Topic…."

A light bulb went on in his head and he ran off to the store not even saying a simple bye. He was worried about his Sakura and I was worried about my Sasuke.

"Idiot…." Sasuke whispered to the air. His friend was off.

"C'mon 's go get those drinks." I grabbed his hand and began to lead him through the mall to go to the smoothie place. He followed without a word.

It wasn't that we didn't click or whatever it was just…I mean Sasuke and I….What bothered me was that Sasuke doesn't really show his emotions and it's just r-

"Are you okay?" My Santa costumed boyfriend asked. I lied and nodded a yes to his question. He didn't say anything but I could feel him staring at me. He knew I just lied but he didn't press the issue.

I'm not completely sure if he likes me as much as I like him. We've been dating for four months. He doesn't like to hug. He'll hold hands and smile. He hates to be caught blushing. Sasuke likes tomatoes a lot like me, so I guess we definitely agree on foods. We have similar tastes but even the sweetest lip gloss on the planet wouldn't make him touch my lips with his own.

We reached the smoothie place. It seemed so out of place beside all of the Christmas decorations. The bright neon yellow sign blinking brightly reading as Shakes and Stuff beside an even brighter pink flamingo. Sasuke and I seemed even more out of place beside the couple in front of us that was holding hands and kissing. I looked over at him and he happened to be looking the other way. I forgot…. He's Sasuke and he's too cool for stuff like that. I'm surprised that I haven't just kissed him yet…Damn Naruto making me all Sasuke and self conscious…..

"Ino, what do you want?" I looked up at tried to read my eyes. I glanced away before he had the chance.

"I want a banana mint thingy…That new thing on the menu." I hoped the sound of my voice didn't scream my thoughts out at him.

"It sounds nasty." He replied simply. I was surprised. His voice was unreadable, hopefully so was my own.

"Well how about the strawberry mango twist?" I looked up to him. He seemed so much taller than me. It seemed like we were a couple feet apart rather than inches. He glanced down at me. He was reading me like a open book.

"I guess. You can get that banana thing if you want." He smiled wickedly at me. "But I don't think that would taste that great mixing with whatever I drink."

"What do you mean?" I played dumb. Trying to make sure if what I think he was trying to say was correct.

"You know when people kiss, they tend to taste whatever the other person has eaten…." I stared at him. He was taunting me. I bit my lip and looked forward, away from his teasing stare.

Finally the couple in front of us moved out the way. I was certain that Sasuke saw the man glance at me when he tightened his grip on my hand. "How can I help you?" The red-headed girl at the counter asked. "Would you like to try our Christmas special? It's the cocoa mint banana shake."

Sasuke spoke. "I want the strawberry mango twist and the Christmas special." I looked at him. That was the banana mint thing. Ha-ha very funny Sasuke. He took the drinks from the lady after he paid for them. We sat at a nearby table that had a flamingo with a Santa hat on as the centerpiece. He sat across from me and I couldn't help but stare. "What?" He asked taking a sip of the mint banana drink. He handed me the strawberry drink I wanted.

"Nothing." Stupid Sasuke. He was reading me. I could tell he knew what I was about to say. He spoke when nothing came from my lips.

"I mean too much banana and mint isn't healthy. It can't be." He smirked.

"At least I got a hug AND a drink this time." I shot back. He smiled smugly.

"Well maybe next time you can get a kiss." He looked at me straight in the eye. He knew what Naruto had said had bothered me. He smirked again wickedly with a glint in his eye. I laughed and just like that he was a bit confused.

I stood up, leaving the drink in front of me untouched. He followed me with his eyes. I stared at him. Honestly I don't even know why I stood up. He simply stared at me. I stared back. "What?" I asked.

He didn't reply and finished his drink. He stood up beside me when he was finished. The irritation was evident. I grabbed his hand. I took his words as a challenge whether he knew it or not.

We walked into Forever 21. A favorite store of mine. Sakura says I should be a model for the place. I sighed and Sasuke noticed. He looked at me and smiled. He knew I took his words as a challenge. I looked at a couple of shirts and dresses, making sure to try on the best and ask Sasuke how I look.

I tried on the final dress. It was a short number. I loved the rich red color. It was so Christmassy. I walked out of the dressing room making sure I put on my cherry chap stick. The extremely feminine perfume I bought from Victoria's Secret was finally becoming useful. I couldn't help it any longer. I was going to kiss Sasuke Uchiha. It didn't matter if I had to seduce him in the store. I was ready.

I walked out of the dressing room towards the chair that Sasuke was sitting in. I sucked in a deep breath and smiled my sweetest smile as I turned the corner.

I made sure to buy that pretty silky red dress.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Thank you for reading. :D

And if you just scrolled all the way down to read the end first….D:

Does the end seem a bit rushed?

And yes, Ino was very insecure about not kissing Sasuke. Also You can think what you want about what happened after Ino turned the corner. Please Review!!!! :D