Author's Note. This was originally a reader-insert one shot request posted on my Wattpad, which I converted into a brief OC short story. Takes place in modern AU, and I tried to reflect Sasuke's personality accordingly. I hope you all enjoy! ~

Part One

"Is this seat taken?"

The girl glanced up from her notebook and directed her eyes towards the open compartment door, where a young man presently stood awaiting her response. A small smirk was toying at his lips as he raised an eyebrow at her, his dark eyes regarding the girl with amusement.

She hadn't even realized that someone had opened the door, far too absorbed in what she was working on to notice. How long had he been standing there?

"Miss?" He questioned again, his smirk growing slightly.

The young girl refocused her attention on the man and rolled her eyes, removing the pencil that she had been dangling between her lips to give him a slight shrug.

"Go for it," she said in a bored manner, turning her attention back towards the notebook she had sprawled in her lap. She placed the tip of the pencil back between her teeth as the young man shuffled into the compartment, closing the door behind him. He swung his backpack onto the luggage rack above their heads before taking a seat directly across from the girl.

"I appreciate it," he said once he got comfortable. "Everywhere else is full."

The girl's eyes remained fixed on her notebook as she hummed a disinterested response. Her mind was focused elsewhere, and she wasn't one for small talk in the first place. She hoped desperately that this guy could take a hint – she couldn't afford to get distracted.

The compartment shook slightly as the train ambled along the tracks. Outside, the scenery blurred past, blending into a mirage of orange and red hues. Night was approaching, and she still had a lot of work to do.

"My name is Sasuke," the man said conversationally after a moment of silence. His voice was a deep monotone, and she could tell by his tone that he usually wasn't much for conversation either. But he was curious, and this fact did not go unnoticed by her.

"Interesting," she mused, never lifting her eyes from the notepad. She had removed the pencil from her lips once more and began scribbling across the paper.

It was only then that Sasuke noticed the map, wedged between the notebook and her lap. From what he could tell, she had sketched out several different routes throughout the area. Some locations were crossed off with bold, black X's while others were circled several times with red ink.

"Where are you headed?" He asked, more curious than ever. The girl sighed in obvious irritation.

"Wherever the hell this train will take me," she muttered shortly. For the first time in a while she glanced up, only to notice that his eyes weren't staring at her face, but at her map.

She frowned, quickly tucking the map into the pages of her notebook. Sasuke lifted his eyes to meet her narrowed gaze and smiled casually, pretending that nothing strange had just occurred between them.

"What are you working on?" His tone was light and carefree, but had doubtful undertones that she picked up on immediately.

The girl wasn't stupid. His voice was practically dripping with suspicion, no matter how casual he tried to act. She didn't like it one bit, nor did she like the questions he had been firing at her.

"Are you writing a book or something?" She retorted rudely, folding her legs up onto the seat. Sasuke chuckled.

"I'm just curious is all," he said smoothly, leaning back with a soft smirk on his face.

"Well don't be." She pulled the map back out from its hiding place, but kept it hidden behind her folded-up knees. She gave him a warning glance before continuing to scribble in her notebook.

Sasuke took this time, while her attention was directed elsewhere, to really look at her. He hadn't noticed before, but she had a very tattered pair of jeans on, the ends frayed slightly from wear, and a pair of worn and dirtied sneakers. Her honey-brown hair was pulled away from her face in a sloppy bun, and she had dark circles under a pair of soft green eyes. And despite the heat outside, the girl was also wearing a large, brown leather jacket that looked to be three sizes too big. Perhaps it had belonged to her father?

"I never got your name," Sasuke said suddenly, his suspicions only growing further. The girl glanced up at him over her notebook.

"Good," she said.

Nearly a month had passed since he had shared a compartment with the mysterious girl, and he hadn't seen hide nor hair of her since. Of course, he thought about her from time to time, wondering where she was and if she was okay, but as the weeks passed him by, the girl slowly slipped from his mind.

The chances of him ever seeing her again were slim to none, anyhow, and he didn't want to waste his time worrying about it.

He slung his backpack over his shoulder as he headed out to his car, burying his hands deep into his pockets as he thought.

The girl honestly hadn't crossed his mind in weeks, and he wondered why now, of all times, he was thinking of her. It had been a usual day at school. Nothing out of the ordinary had happened that would have reminded him of the girl. So why was she suddenly plaguing his thoughts?

His lips tugged into a frown.

Something didn't feel right to him – he had a sudden queasy feeling in his stomach, and his hands felt cold despite the late August heat. There was something that seemed off, but he couldn't figure out what.

These feelings were quickly dispelled, however, as he approached his car. He opened the door and threw his bag in the back seat before getting in.

Perhaps he shouldn't have skipped lunch that afternoon. That must be why he felt so funny – he would have to stop somewhere for food on his way to the station.

"Did you bring the files?"

Fugaku Uchiha glanced up from his desk as his youngest son entered his office, his stern face peering expectantly at the dark-haired teen.

Sasuke's face remained impassive as pulled out a stack of folders from his backpack, tossing them onto the desk. His father had asked him to bring them to the police station, since he had forgotten them that morning in his rush to get to work.

"That was everything you left behind," Sasuke said, walking forward to lean against the edge of the table. Fugaku grunted, picking up the top folder and opening it. His eyes scanned over the paperwork and he sighed.

"Third one this week," he grumbled to himself, frowning at whichever case had appeared first.

"What's that?" Sasuke peered over the desk to glance at the file.

"Just another runaway," his father sighed, shaking his head slightly. He flipped the page over to read the personal description of the subject, and Sasuke blanched when he saw the picture.

It was the girl from the train, peering back at him sardonically from the top of the file. The photo was very obviously taken from a school yearbook, cropped so that the other students' pictures wouldn't be shown as well. It must have been an older picture, as she looked much younger than she did in person, but she wore the same solemn expression on her face as she had the first time he had met her.

Next to the picture was her name: Amano, Mei.

Sasuke felt as though his stomach had plummeted, and the queasy feeling he had experienced earlier quickly returned.

His father closed the folder and tossed it aside, completely unaware of the horrified look on his son's face.

Sasuke's mind was reeling.

It made sense, of course, when he stopped to think about it – what with her evasive attitude and all. He had just assumed at the time that she was cautious of talking to strangers, as most young women are socialized to be, or that perhaps she had a naturally negative reaction to interacting with people in general.

But now he knew that it was much more than that

He thought back to the dark circles that surrounded her eyes, and the tattered condition of the clothes that she wore; to the obvious irritation at his questioning, and the marked-up map that she had tried to hide from him.

Yes, the pieces definitely fit once he put them together in his mind. He felt foolish to have not realized it sooner. But there was one piece, one crucial detail, that he still hadn't figured out.

What, or who, is she running from?