The pink haired gem bowed her head downwards, her emerald orbs diving their sad gaze into the crystal clear waters of the river's banks. The image of a certain raven man came to her mind as if reflecting on the shining waters, filling it with emptiness. Cause when he occupied her thoughts, everything else stopped existing for a while. A while enough to seem like a century to her hurting mind.

His bittersweet memory danced in the air around her, making her already upset breath come to a brief but painful pause. And then tears fell, like diamonds in the brightly clear flow below her. She vaguely wondered how it'd feel if she had the chance to meet him again. Would it be painful? Would it be akward? Or would it be as if nothing bad had ever happened between them? Would they be able to talk? Like him and her. Like the boy and the girl that was unregretfully in love with the said boy? Like two hearts, hidden in the daylight but glowing in their miserable darkness, emptied and uncovered from all the rest that always interfered in their reality.

Or…would they talk as if they were enemies? She still couldn't see the raven as a threat to her, even after two attempts at her already pointless life from his part. There was a persistent but rational voice often screaming inside her that she was a fool and that what Sasuke did was the worst he could ever have done to her. That she neednt forgive him his falls anymore. That she should move on and forget about him. And if not, then hate him, hate him with all of her bleeding heart. But she found, with an unexplainable joy, that her heart could do nothing but love him, no matter what he did. Like a stray dog, always going back to his owner, no matter how badly he had treated it. And there's truth in the fact that such a thought was nothing but degrading to her, but love knew no pride and no egoism. And that's how she knew she loved him. In her own, irrational, obsessed, depressed, hopeful kind of way, her way of loving him.

All those years of him having left did nothing but strengthen her love for him. Like a withering away rose, waiting patiently for the rain before surrendering to its death, getting stronger every day in front of its fiery desire for it. But boy, would it be such a sweet end to her if that day ever came.

For the past weeks, she had made it a sacred ritual of hers to come to that very river, almost every day, and sit for about an hour, pondering endlessly and lazily over Sasuke, fanning further her hopes of his coming back and returning her love with her wild imagination. She would steal an hour from her daily routine at her hospital, saying she needed to go out and train to her fighting skills, or she would soon forget them all, as Tsunade used to half jokingly say to her from time to time, since she had begged Tsunade to stop assigning her to missions anymore. She had told only Ino but inside her she felt weaker each passing day, less motivated to get up from her bed and go to her work, to help people, to flash her bright smile to her friends, fake or not, to keep living.

Coming to that little secret place of hers did a lot to keep her going. Sometimes she wouldn't just sit there, thinking nolstagicly of her beloved one. Sometimes, she just ran around like crazy, hitting anything in her way and screaming in anger, in sorrow, in awe, in disbelief, with tears running down her green eyes. But that was mostly at the start of that habit of hers. It had been a few weeks now that she would be calmer, more collected, more at peace with herself.

She felt herself slowly falling, as her shoulders relaxed and her eye lids half slidded dangerously but with a small push, she forced herself awake again and half smiled as she turned her gaze to the sun setting horizon. She had almost fell asleep, but she didn't mind, it was a good sign. A good break from all the rage and tension she had been nesting all this time.

Suddenly, she thought she caught a change in the water's surface below her but when she focused her gaze on it, there was nothing new or weird.

"Perhaps, I got too relaxed here." She thought to herself, shaking her head and turning to observe the forest in front of her. The remaining morning birds sang their last song before taking their way home as the sun's rays were painting the trees in orange tones, creating a weirdly sad feeling inside her.

"I must go." A weak voice inside her reminded her.

But as she ever moved so lightly, she felt her back hitting against something.

"Where you're going, Sakura?'' a husky voice whispered in her ear, accompanied by the warm breath that caressed her neck.

Sakura froze at her spot, her gaze immediately falling on her reflection below. Her breath came to a stop, and her heart beat harder as her secret hope was fulfilled. Sasuke was looking back at her, through his reflection, right into her disbelieving eyes.

"Sasu…" she tried to talk.

"Shhh, don't say anything." The familiar voice repeated. "Now, don't try to get away." The man said and Sakura was about to protest but stayed in place as she felt and saw his katana nesting dangerously in front of her neck.

She swallowed hard.

"But…are, do you want to kill me" Sakura said, her voice almost breaking in the cruel realization.

She heard the raven chuckle darkly, and his breath hit her skin again, making a certain spot in her body tingle shamefully.

"Perhaps." she heard him say and felt her heart breaking in a million pieces. Tears of fear and hurt gathered at the corner of her eyes but a last hint of dignity inside her kept them locked.

"You come here often. You, always, seem so sad." Sasuke whispered as if having read her mind.

Sakura hated that he was threatening with that katana which was so coldly flirting with her skin and her sanity, because she had so much she wanted to say to him but the fear kept her silent.

She settled for staring at his reflection on the crystal river waters, trying to satisfy her hungry eyes as they looked at his form so lovingly and nervously in the same time, unable to contain the burning emotions in them anymore.

She watched terrified as Sasuke averted his eyes from hers slowly and focused on the perly skin of her neck. She felt his warm breath coming closer to it as he connected his soft lips. She couldn't help but give up on her shaking body at that and the raven lost no time to wrap his free arm around her, his hand resting on her stomach.

"You still love me." she heard him whispering again, against her skin, and she was afraid to reply, fearing that her voice might betray how much she enjoyed his touch.

"I…I can't forget about you, Sasuke-kun." Sakura's voice escaped her lips before she had any time to prevent it, her emotions and desires running on the wild while she was drunk with his existence around her.

"I can't forget you, either." The raven whispered almost shyly. Sakura's eyes widened and she felt a tear running down her soft cheek.

"Sasuke-kun…" Sakura whispered, a sob painting her confused voice.

"That's why I need to kill you." The cursed angel said as he pushed the katana harder against the soft reddish skin.

Sakura couldn't help but react automatically at that and grab his katana holding wrist, as if trying to prevent him from progressing with his dark plan.

Sasuke's eyes seemed slightly sad on his reflection. Suddenly, he stared back at her through the waters and Sakura felt her hand drop. He seemed so determined, that she knew, no matter how hard she resisted, he would win her over in the end.

She was terrified but couldn't bring herself to say a thing to him. Perhaps cause a part of her was happy that he would relieve her with death from the living hell she had to go through each day of her every day life. She was happy that she would get to die in his arms. Perhaps, it was even more than she could have ever dreamed off.

"But first,…I want to do something." Sasuke's reflection looked at her now mischeviously and Sakura's mind stopped working.

For a while, there was total silence, the only sound being that of her frenetic heart beat, threatening to break her chest.

She watched erratic, as Sasuke softly cupped her cheek with his free hand and turned her face to him.

Two pair of lips united in a soft but passionate kiss, as the raven pressed the delirious her against him.

Sakura could feel her tears streaming down as Sasuke kissed her in a way she had never imagined, almost lovingly.

Fearlessly, carried away by her own desire, she tangled her longing fingers in his dark hair, gripping them tightly as she struggled to not lose her sanity in their harsh tempest of passion.

With her eyes closed, she felt the katana moving away from her neck and a pair of strong arms gripping her tightly and pressing her harder against him. The kiss now became more painful, more needy. She hugged him back, as if clinging to her life. If she was to go now, she'd be a happy woman.

"Sa ku ra." The raven whispered against her lips, sending shivers down her spine.

"I love you, Sasuke-kun." She said, trying to catch her excited breath.

"I love you…" she heard a voice replying back. She vaguely recognized it was her own voice, as she slowly woke up to it, realizing she had been whispering those words at her sleep.

Her face still wet from the tears she had shed while in that deep slumber, she sat on her knees and stretched.

Slightly disappointed that this had been yet another dream and not the reality, she looked at the waters, fixing herself. She had got used to it anymore. It wasn't the first time she had dreamed of Sasuke while falling asleep there. At least, in dreams, she could have him. And boy, did it feel real this time.

She yawned, lightly taken aback by how real her last dream had felt and stood up slowly, straightening her skirt.

It was already night in the sky and the noon breeze was turning cold, carrying a few stray leaves on its way. Sakura rubbed the side of her neck and gave a last look at the magical horizon, before turning away and walking back…to reality.