Acacia (Saino)
Ino was the epitome of popularity. She had everything that one needed in order to be popular. She was tall, slim, pretty, and not to mention blond which had its few perks. She was also head cheerleader and at one time had dated Sasuke, the captain of the football team. Both girls and boys worshipped her. Girls worshipped her because she was popular and what every girl wanted to be. Boys loved her because to be frank, she was hot. If Sasuke dated her, she is worthy of any guy's attention. However, she isn't an easy catch and everyone knows it. She's Ms. Popular as well as Ms. Hard to Get. She target of everyone's affection but she doesn't return anybody's love or at least that's what others think. There is only one person she loves in this world and it was a quiet nobody named Sai.
Sai was the epitome of outcast. He had everything one needed in order to be a loser by school standards. He was quiet, rarely spoke, and had an aura of mysteriousness surrounding him. He was good looking though not many girls acknowledged it since they were all Sasuke for the win. One of the girls that recognized it was Yamanaka Ino.
The first time they had met, Ino was sobbing quietly in the art room where nobody went because art wasn't popular anymore, it was all about skateboarding, basketball and not to mention football.
"Umm...you're ruining my sketch pad." That was the first thing Sai had said to a distraught blond who happened to be crying as she put her head down on his sketch pad.
"Huh?" She got up and realized her tears and ruined the page which had a drawing on it. "Sorry."
"It's fine. I can redraw it." Sai said quietly and ripped off the page. He threw it into the trash can and began drawing at once.
Ino wiped her tears and sat in her seat. Normally most guys would have given her their undying attention because she was on top of the social ladder, but he was different. He instead had his attention focused on a mere white sketch pad. He looked so serious when he drew and Ino was amazed.
"You're not going to ask why I'm crying?" Ino asked the ebony haired boy.
"No, am I supposed to?" He questioned without looking up from his drawing.
"No, it's just most people generally do." She was a little taken back by his question. Not many people had answered in that way...actually...no one answers like that at all.
"I see." Sai said quietly. "Then do you want me to ask?"
"Um...no."
"Alright." The classroom became quiet and all Ino could hear was the quiet scratching of the lead against the paper. She closed her eyes and put her head down. Allowing the rhythmic scratching to lull her to sleep.
She had woken up later and rubbed her eyes. What time was it? Cheerleading practice must have been over by now. She sat up and felt something around her shoulders. It was a black hoodie and Ino reckoned it probably belonged to Sai. It was warm and she could smell a scent that seemed unique, It didn't smell like axe or tag like most boys sprayed on themselves. It was a interesting scent that seemed fresh and crisp. She turned to her right and saw Sai, asleep with the sketch pad under him. His face was towards her. Was he watching her sleep? She hadn't realized it before, but he wasn't that bad in the looks department. He had a sharp nose, pale skin, and a nice jaw line. If wanted to, he could have been popular, possibly even more popular than Sasuke. For some reason though, Ino had the feeling he had chose not to climb up the social ladder. He looked so peaceful when he slept. When he slept, it seemed like the whole world was at peace and pretty soon, Ino had forgotten about the fact Sasuke had broken up with her to be with some girl named Sakura or whatever her name was.
Pretty soon, she had fallen for the quiet boy. Everyone in the school had heard about how Sasuke had dumped her to be with a girl lower than her in the hierarchy, but she didn't care. She had gotten over him and was now in love with Sai. The thought of Sai had made her blush and her heart pound as if there was no tomorrow. Every day, after cheer practice, she would run to the art class room and there would be Sai, working on the sketch as usual. She would sit there and fall asleep while he sketched and drew on a sketch pad. The old her would have craved for attention and demanded a conversation but this was a different her. She didn't mind the silence and didn't mind that his attention wasn't directed at her. She actually enjoyed how serene it felt in the classroom and admired the dedication he gave to every piece of work he did. Part of her though, wondered what he thought of her. Was she pretty in his eyes? It was time she found out.
"Umm...Sai." Ino had interrupted him for once when he was drawing.
"Yes?"
"I...I like you." Ino whispered in the quiet room. The boy had stopped working and turned to look at the blond who was blushing. What was wrong with her? Why was she blushing? She never blushes, but then again she has never confessed without knowing the outcome beforehand.
"I like you too." Sai said quietly and a red hue appeared across his pale cheeks.
Ino smiled. "Then does that mean we're together?"
"Do you want us to be?"
"Yes!" She shouted and covered her mouth.
"Then we're together." Sai smiled.
Ino felt her heart burst with joy. It was the first time in her life that she had felt this happy. The happiness she felt when she became queen of the school was nothing compared to the feeling she had now. From that day on, nothing excited her more than seeing him after practice was over. Though no one knew they were together, Sai didn't like the idea of a swarm of people around him and Ino didn't mind. Sai was hers only and no girl was going to notice him except her, as selfish as that sounded.
"Where are you going Ino?" A group of popular girls asked.
"Just heading home, bye!" Ino waved and dashed towards the art classroom.
"You're early." Sai noted as he looked up to see her with his obsidian eyes smiling. He stood up and planted a kiss on her lips. It was sweet and she felt her heart pounded faster.
"Is it bad for me to be early?" She questioned with a smile.
He shook his head. "Here." He gave her a rectangular wrapped gift.
"What is it?"
"Open it."
She unwrapped it slowly to find a beautiful painting of a flower. The flower was small and yellow surrounded by an array of green leaves. The painting looked realistic as if she could pick it up and smell its scent. "It's beautiful." She whispered.
"I wanted you to have it. It was the drawing you wet." Sai mumbled.
"What kind of
flower is it?"
"The flower is called acacia."
"It's a beautiful flower."
"It reminded me of us." He blushed.
"How?" She tried looking at it from a different angle.
"Acacia in the language of flowers means secret love." He whispered in her ear and made her shiver.
"That is like us." She smiled. She put down the painting and wrapped her arms around Sai's neck. They kissed once more and she smiled.
Acacias were lovely.
