Important note: Hey guys. I am so, so sorry for the long hiatus. I know I have rewritten this story (probably, two times?), but as you can see, I have decided to rewrite it again. I was definitely not satisfied with where the story is going. My portrayal of Sakura was not delivered well either. Don't you worry, I have written about five chapters so far, and I will be updating every week. So, be a little patient with me.
I had fun writing this chapter, and I hope you guys will like it. Do let me know.
Freak-show101
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Chapter One
/00Heartbeat00/
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As if it was painted perfectly on a blank canvas, the night was pretty. The moon was at its brightest, fireflies flew beautifully around the trees. The atmosphere was calm and serene, it was a perfect night.
Sakura hated it. Something mean curled her lips, thoughts of doing something unnecessary like picking up stone and throwing it at the pretty, pretty insects or be seen as a mental person for shouting at the sky—cursing loudly at it for not raining, made her feel slightly better. Normally, the rain, thunder, and lightning would ruin her mood any other day, but she was hoping the weather goddess would be on her side tonight, washing her sadness away.
Ideally, when one was feeling emotions like anger, sadness and pain, shit weather would be perfect for her current predicament. She was definitely not in the mood for appreciating pretty things, Sakura was never an optimist. 'Looking at the bright side,' was not an easy thing to do, since she's more than emotional, too absorbed in her own pain to bother about anything else. Not that she was doing it obliviously, she scoffed to herself, tucking a pink strand behind an ear as she stared ahead, remembering an old conflict she had with her best friends.
She remembered shutting herself out, running away from her friends, family—the people who loved her, just because her little feelings were hurt. Sakura loved being in her comfort zone, blending in with her friends, refusing to stand out—not wanting the spotlight to be on her. So when she was forcefully dragged out of her protective bubble, she fled. Her wonderful friends, of course, found her with little effort, since they probably know her better than she knows herself, demanding answers; she was accused of being selfish.
Frowning, she pushed the awful memory back into her mind. Why her mind decided to show her that, she doesn't know, but it didn't surprise her. Things got crazy whenever she's upset. Sakura continued walking down the familiar, narrow road. Since its past midnight, it looked abandoned and a little scary, with rats scurrying around, hunting for food. She has no idea how long it has been since she walked through this path, the feeling of nostalgia crept slowly into her. She couldn't decide whether she liked the feeling of it.
As she was walking by, she noticed a couple roughly around her age, sitting down on a bench with their fingers intertwined. The black haired girl, Sakura envied secretly, was really pretty. She was biting her lower lip, whispering something to her boyfriend, and it seemed she was pleased with what she said, because he was nearing his face towards hers, locking their lips into a sweet kiss. Realising she was standing there, staring dumbly at the couple like a pervert, Sakura adverted her eyes to the ground and continued her walk to her destination, the convenience store.
Even though she tried to erase the image of the couple she had seen previously, it wouldn't go away. It seemed she has no control of her mind, it would do whatever it wants. Thinking about it made her really uncomfortable and a little jealous, since her relationship was far from perfect. It was funny how a mere feeling like love changed the way she thinks, forcing her to look at things in a different perspective. It was funny how love turned her into a pathetic, giggly high school girl with a silly crush. The things that a man can make her feel scares her. The fact that she was just that, few hours ago, scares her.
Sakura reached the convenience store sooner than she thought, not bothering to count the minutes. She pulled one of the glass doors open and stepped inside the shop, tugging her grey jacket closer to herself to stifle the chilly air-conditioning. With no hesitation, she rushed towards the drink's section, eying the countless bottles of rum, vodka, and scotch. In the back of her mind, her conscience still alive and kicking, who sounded strangely like Hinata, screamed 'No!' and 'You will regret it in the morning!' surprised her.
'I'm really going nuts,' she frowns to herself, shaking her head slightly. She has plenty of time to dwell on the mistake she's going to make in the morning. Right now, Sakura doesn't want to be sober. Grabbing a bottle of Smirnoff, she walked towards the counter. The counter girl, prettier than the black haired girl she saw earlier, almost close to beautiful, scrutinized her blue eyes at her, probably thinking she was a wreck. A look of disdain was thrown blatantly at her, but Sakura didn't take offence. She shrugged it off, clearly aware of her messy appearance.
Her medium length pink hair tousled and greasy, her face tear-stained with the usual thick eyeliner she wore every day, her lips dry and chapped. Sakura was sure she doesn't smell pleasant, she knows she should shower when she got home earlier today, but she couldn't be fucked to do so. Sakura doesn't give two shits about how she smelt and how she looked like, it's not like she has to see anyone she knows anyway, so why trouble herself to look good?
Ignoring the look she received by the pretty blonde, she placed the alcohol bottle on top of the table, taking out her wallet from the back pocket of her jeans. Shifting her eyes behind the counter girl, she scanned at the packets of cigarettes, deciding to choose her favorite.
"Winston Reds, please."
When the counter girl gave her a blank stare, Sakura raised a pink eyebrow back at her.
"We don't sell alcohol and cigarettes to minors," the counter girl said slowly, as if speaking to a child, "It's illegal."
Using a tone that she learnt from Ino, Sakura leaned forward towards the counter girl, her smile cold as ice. "Honey," she said, sugary sweet, staring straight into her blue eyes, "I'm twenty-two." Sakura took out her id card as proof that she was telling the truth, enjoying the surprised look on the counter girl's face.
"Oh, I am sorry," the blonde said, although her body language told Sakura otherwise. Sakura rolled her eyes and slid her id into her wallet, waiting for the counter girl to scan her alcohol and cigarettes into a plastic bag. Her fingers tapped onto the table, sighing impatiently as she stared at the counter girl in annoyance.
"That will be sixty-five dollars
Sakura gave her a hundred. She took back her change and the plastic bag, and she was about to walk away, making a mental note to not come back here ever again, when the counter girl spoke again.
"Wait. I know you. Haruno Sakura…. You're that bitch who stole Sasuke-kun away from me! You're his fiancé, aren't you?"
Sakura's body stiffened instantly. Based on the way the counter girl spoke his name with too much affection, Sakura doesn't want to think about the disgusting things they did together. With her heart pounding loudly, beating faster and faster, Sakura clenched her jaw, gritting her teeth as she narrowed her eyes into dangerous slits—glaring hatefully at the counter girl.
"Mind your own business, bitch," she sneered, scaring the stupid blonde away.
Sakura stuffed her cold hands into the pockets of her jeans, walking away before the counter girl could say anything stupid. Stepping out of the shop, she scanned her surroundings, finding a good place to drink her sorrows away. Spotting an empty bench, and deciding that it would be as good a place as any to be until morning, she walked towards it. Swiping the fallen leaves and twigs, she sat down on it, taking out the cigarette out of the plastic bag and lit up a stick, inhaling the bitter smoke.
Tsunade would kick her ass for picking up the habit again, Sakura thought, smiling slightly at the memory of her angry aunt. 'Sasuke would not approve either.' Her smile dropped, inwardly cursing her inner conscience for fucking up her mood every single time. She was not supposed to think about him, she doesn't want to remember his disapproving stare when he caught her with a cigarette. In fact, Sakura doesn't want to remember his facial expressions at all—she doesn't want to think about him tonight.
Before she could stop herself, her eyesight went blurry. She blinked, teardrops flowing down her face, even though she promised she wouldn't cry for him again. She knows it was pointless, since she would always end up crying for that bastard anyway. An emotional slave she was, she knew the things he did behind her back, no matter how hard she tried to convince herself that it was not possible and that he wouldn't dare to make her cry, he promised—she knows, deep, deep in her little heart, she knows that Sasuke was cheating behind her back.
With a cigarette in between her lips, she took out the alcohol bottle and gave it a shake, twisting the cap open. She took a swig, cringing at the awful taste as she forced herself to swallow the liquid, loving the way her throat burned.
"Sasuke can choke on his own dick," Sakura said sourly, "I am going to drink like crazy tonight."
A few hours passed as Sakura continued drinking and smoking; shots after shots, sticks after sticks, staring at random things like lampposts and lights, for far too long. She knows she was so close to being completely wasted, her head was pounding and she lost count on how many shots she had, although the bottle was a quarter empty. She was a lightweight to start off with, and she wasn't sure if she really liked drinking, since she would regret doing it the next day, puking her guts out down the toilet bowl. Not that it had stopped her from drinking, anyway.
Sakura giggled to herself when a familiar black SUV stopped in front of her. She wasn't surprised in the least when an all-too-familiar blonde with whisker tattoos stepped out of the car.
"Sakura-chan."
She didn't pay him any attention and continued to smoke her cigarette, leaning her head against the bench and blow out the smoke into the dark sky. Refusing to even look at him, she ignored his subtle sigh, feeling warmth beside her as he sat down.
"Sakura-chan. Talk to me."
Ignoring his question, she turned to him, replying his question with a question.
"How'd you find me, Naruto?"
Usually, she would love to see his infamous grin, but since she was in her depressed state at the moment, not to mention that her mind was completely intoxicated, his cheerful self was a little irritating. Feeling a little guilty for feeling that way, Sakura inwardly scolded herself for being mean bitch.
"I could feel your soul screaming for help, and it wouldn't stop bitching at me, ya know? Jeez Sakura, I am here now."
Sakura laughed then, playfully punching his arm.
"Stop breaking my balls, Naruto, you cheeky bastard."
Naruto smiled, raising a hand to ruffle her pink hair. Sakura dodged, slapping his hand away, not wanting to be touched. The blonde man awkwardly pat her shoulder, rejection was obvious in his eyes.
"…I stink, Naruto," she said finally, not wanting to hurt her friend, "The last time I took a shower was last night."
Naruto barked a laugh, clutching his stomach slightly.
"Ew, you're so gross, Sakura," he said, wiping away his tears. "No wonder it smells funky here."
Sakura narrowed her eyes playfully, pushing him with her shoulder. "Oi, oi, don't hurt my feelings."
It was silent then, not that it bothered Sakura. She took her last puff, and threw it on the ground, crushing the cigarette bud with her sneakers. She took her cigarette box, thinking of lighting up another stick, but changing her mind quickly when she was only left with five sticks. Amazed and slightly disturbed at her ability to smoke so fast in a few hours—although, she thinks, it might be more than just a few hours, Sakura was too lazy to walk back towards the convenience store to buy another pack. Also, she wouldn't want see the pretty counter girl right now.
Remembering of the counter girl, Sakura spoke.
"Hey, Naruto, do you see the store right there?" she asked, pointing to her right, to which Naruto said yeah, looking at her quizzically, not sure where this question is going, "I went there to buy my cigarettes and well, it seems the counter girl knows Sasuke."
Naruto raised an eyebrow.
"Oh you know," Sakura pressed on, "Knows, knows Sasuke."
Naruto widen his blue eyes in disbelief.
"No shit?"
Sakura nodded, widening her eyes as well, to emphasize her point.
"Yeah, tell me about it."
She could hear him mutter 'damn' under his breath, and secretly, Sakura agreed. Both of them knew that Sasuke would fuck anything with a vagina. Naruto took the bottle and turned to Sakura, asking for permission to drink it. Sakura rolled her eyes and waved her hand, with a teasing smile on her lips. Sakura carefully leaned her head against his shoulder, deciding to smoke another cigarette.
"Why is Sasuke such a manslut?"
She could feel movement around his shoulders, a shrug, she assumed.
"Dunno, you picked him," he said after a while, taking another gulp.
"Your best friend," she shot back, "and hey, don't finish that," she said, snatching the bottle away from him, taking a big gulp herself.
"Yeah, I know, he's such a dick."
Even though Sakura giggled at his soft jab towards Sasuke, her heart clenched painfully. She was about to insult the bastard even more, but before she could even speak, Naruto's phone rang. Sakura sighed to herself, closing her eyes, listening to his conversation, not that he'd mind, since she's beside him anyway.
"Hey. Yeah, she's with me now. Okay, sure. I'll meet you there."
Not wanting to open her eyes, she felt his arms moving, and the 'sshkf' sound of the plastic bag. She felt him nudging her head.
"Sakura, it's time to go."
Sakura groaned, refusing to move an inch. She sat up then, her mind feeling drowsy and heavy. She leaned her head back against the bench, but then she felt someone pulled her forwards, forcing her to stand on her feet. She opened her eyes, frowning at the blonde man for forcing her to walk.
"Ngh," she groaned again, opening the passenger door and climbed into the car with little effort, shutting it quickly, decided to lean her head against the window this time. She wounded down the window when Naruto started the engine, wanting to feel the cool fresh air on her skin, instead of the lemon-scented air-conditioner. "Why are you breaking my balls more than usual today, Naruto, ngh. Where the hell are you taking me?"
She heard his chuckle.
"Karin's place. They are waiting for you there. They're worried sick, you know."
Sakura shrugged.
"Eh. Who's there?"
Without any warning, Naruto took a sharp turn to the left, Sakura almost hurled at the sudden movement. Sakura moaned painfully.
"I…I think I need a plastic bag. I don't feel so good. And don't ignore my question, Naruto."
Naruto took out the alcohol bottle from the bag and tossed it to the back seat, handing her the plastic bag.
"Oh you," he said teasingly, grinning at Sakura's current state, "You're such a lightweight. Anyway, our friends are there."
"Naruto, I'm gonna hit you—oh my god, I'm gonna hurl. Slow down with the driving will you?"
Naruto smirked, stomping on the pedal and accelerate.
"I'll try."