Disclaimer: Of course I don't own Naruto.
Trust was not something that came easily to a ninja. It was not something that came easily to anyone. A brother could destroy your life. A friend could easily betray you. A love could leave you behind. A teammate could lie. A teacher could discount you. A stranger could mock you, but this was the kindest thing. A stranger was not someone you knew. A stranger would never understand.
So be wary of making a stranger your teammate, friend, lover, because they can leave you to die. They can hurt you more than any other.
Sai had friends.
The thought was an odd one, certainly seemed out of place, but Sakura watched him and knew it was true. He made friends out of convenience, that was sure. "Friends" who wouldn't trust him any more than he would them. And also Naruto, she knew, because it was clear that they thought the world of each other.
She watched as Naruto introduced Sai to his friends, and the Ne operative did his best to win them over. Sometimes it worked, and sometimes it didn't, but they all accepted him because it was clear that Naruto was his friend. And they were, all of them, friends of Naruto. Eventually, Sai would win them over, because he had Naruto on his side. Naruto, who never gave up on anything.
Sakura did not introduce Sai to her friends, and no one expected her to. It was assumed that she thought Sai would be bored by girl talk, and makeovers, and gossip. That he would not be interested in medical discussions, since obviously she would have friends in the hospital.
It was assumed that she would have friends, and many, from all walks of life.
They were wrong.
She had comrades, teammates. Colleagues, contacts. She had a rival. She had acquaintances, and curiosities. She had clients and patients. Admirers and annoyances. She had a teacher who spent too little time teaching, and a mentor who spent too much time slacking. She did not have friends.
Instead, she had the social life one would have assumed belonged to Sai.
This was the life she had chosen. She would have it no other way.
She spent too much time watching Sai. It was something she knew, acknowledged, but could not make herself brood over. At first it was because of his outward similarities to Sasuke; later, her curiosity over him as a teammate.
Now she watched him for his inward similarities to herself.
She had emotions, and was quick to show them, and understood how they worked (since, like most women, she'd been ruled by them most of her life). He was still a novice when it came to them, but eager and fearless. He had nothing to lose.
He was very typically male. Always, she had been afraid.
Eventually, Sai would notice her watching him. He always did. And he would look to her, which was something Sasuke would never do, and then he would smile. That same awkward smile that he always used now, since now he had emotions, and it wasn't just exercising the muscles in his face.
And it was the smile that always made her think that they weren't as similar as they could be, as they should be. Because Sakura always felt alone, and now Sai was branching out.
Note: This is a really, really, really old fic...at least months old. I wrote it a while ago with the intention of posting it here, but apparently never got around to it.