Hello!
It has been a very long time and I am glad to say that I am back…for the time being.
I have decided to continue with a new story, hopefully something you will enjoy. Please excuse my grammar mistakes—it's been a while since I've written anything. Feel free to correct me in the reviews.
Speaking of reviews, write some! I'd love to see what you think. I intend this story to not be too long (possibly 10-13 chapters?).
Anyhow, I'm excited to see what you all think about the first chapter! Please leave any criticisms or compliments; I love taking constructive criticism.
It was as if someone punched him in the gut, knocking out all the air within his body. The sounds of tinkling of champagne glasses and gleeful laughter faded as he watched her walk into the extravagant ballroom in a strikingly beautiful, sleek black chiffon dress with jeweled lace running up her neck and down her arms. To his curiosity, she also had an unusual hair color: light pink. It ran down her shoulders gracefully, curled and shiny. At this distance, he could not tell if the color was manufactured or natural, though he swore that he would soon find out.
He stared as she began to walk towards his direction, eventually sauntering past him and exchanging greetings with Uzumaki Naruto and his brother, Sasuke. Surprised that she knew his brother, he frowned slightly because his brother never mentioned her, especially about how beautiful she was. He turned his attention away from his annoying cousin and grabbed two champagne glasses from a passing waiter.
His cousin, confused, asked, "Eh, Itachi? Where are you going?"
Itachi merely smirked at his cousin and replied, "I'm going to greet our guest." He looked at the pink-haired beauty. "This is our party, correct?"
Leaving his cousin dumfounded, Itachi began to walk towards her.
Naruto's eyes widened as he noticed a certain someone approaching them. Cursing under his breath, he looked at his friend and muttered, "Sakura, don't be alarmed but I think Uchiha Itachi is walking towards us right now." He looked up at the intimidating Uchiha and twitched. Naruto notice something, something that confused him greatly. He whispered again, "And I think he's looking right at you."
Sasuke snapped his head up and met his older brother's gaze. Stiffening, Sasuke wrapped his hand gently around Sakura's arm and twisted her so she stood behind them.
Her friend's statement made her pause. Uchiha Itachi? Why would he be walking over to her? As far as she knew, Uchihas tended to stick to their own or to those who would benefit their name. The only way she knew Naruto was from college and he's the only reason that she knows Sasuke.
She mentally scoffed; Harunos weren't at the bottom of the totem pole in Konoha's Elite, but definitely not up to par compared to the Uzumakis or Uchihas. Her family operated small, but up-and-coming, pharmaceutical company while the Uchihas and Uzuamkis dominated in every branch of business. From international trading to legal weapons dealing—there wasn't anything the Uchihas and Uzumakis didn't have licensed under their name.
Sasuke continued to hold Sakura's arm and glanced at Naruto. If Itachi was coming over here, it was because he either: 1) wanted to discuss business with Naruto or 2) talk to Sakura. He sighed. Who could blame him? He knew that when he invited Sakura to his families' annual charity ball that she would draw some attention.
He looked back at her, noticing her large, bright green eyes staring at his brother. In all honesty…how could she not draw any attention? Although they were just friends, he noticed all the same things that his brother probably noticed just now. Her delicate, yet defined features, her soft pink hair, her lean yet small stature, and most of all, her twinkling viridian eyes—she stood out amongst the guests in the room. She was obviously very attractive and Sasuke was surprised at how little Sakura knew how she affected people, both physically and emotionally.
She gripped his arm with her other hand and inquired, "What do you think he wants?"
His hand tightened slightly around her wrist as he mustered three words: "I don't know".
Itachi's lip twitched in amusement as he noticed his little brother and his friend, Naruto, visibly tense as they watched him approach Sakura. The smirk disappeared as he observed Sasuke grab Sakura's arm and pull her behind him.
Unsure at why his little brother was trying to hide his friend from him, Itachi raised his eyebrow at Sasuke. Sasuke failed to return any facial expression, which amused Itachi again. No matter—whether his little brother wanted him to talk to the mysterious, bright-eyed woman or not, Itachi would get to introduce himself gracefully.
Itachi stopped as he reached his destination. "Ah, Naruto. Welcome to the party. I would shake your hand but my hands are a bit occupied at the moment." He held up the two champagne glasses. "I was going to offer your little friend a drink."
Sakura peered behind Sasuke's overwhelmingly large back and grimaced. Pulling Sasuke's grip from her arm, she clipped, "Little friend?" Grabbing one of the champagne glasses from his hand, she took a sip. "Uchiha-san, believe me—I am far from little nor am I complimented by you addressing me as such."
Ah, her voice was lovely. Strong, yet melodic in a way.
"I did not mean to offend." Itachi held his hand out. "Uchiha Itachi, CEO of Uchiha Internationals."
She gently smiled and grabbed his hand with a relatively strong grip. "Haruno Sakura, Head Director of Haruno Pharmaceuticals."
He flipped her hand over to reveal the back of her hand onto his lips. "The pleasure is mine, Sakura."
Naruto and Sasuke froze in horror and disgust. Seeing Itachi blatantly flirt with a girl, in particular, their friend, was disturbing at best. Itachi was always the cold-hearted bastard, never showing considering beyond the company and family.
Rather than being flustered, Sakura laughed. With a twinkle in her eye, she chimed, "My, Itachi. Aren't you quite the charmer? Next thing you'll ask me is for my number and if I have a boyfriend."
"Ah, be careful, Sakura." Itachi took a sip of champagne. "You might just get your wish."
Suddenly, Sakura stepped forward to Itachi, clearly getting a bit too close for comfort. Sasuke and Naruto tensed as they watched their friend. She leaned up on her toes and whispered, "I know your game, Itachi." She placed her hand gently on his chest and smiled as he stiffened underneath her fingertips. "You smirk and charm people into doing things for you but know that your little act won't work on me. Don't flirt with me so obviously and expect me to swoon at your feet." She tilted her head slightly. "To me, you aren't all that great."
She leaned back down and saw the astonishment on Itachi's face. Lips curved, Sakura patted down Itachi's immaculate Gucci suit and with a smile, "Pleasure meeting you, Itachi. We should talk business soon."
With a final grin, she said her polite goodbyes to her friends and Itachi and went about the room.
Words couldn't possibly describe the amount of tension between the three men left in Sakura's dust. Naruto and Sasuke were incredibly shocked at Sakura's behavior; she rarely gets snippy with strangers as her parents raised her to be impeccably polite to all people. And to top it all off, she got snippy with Uchiha Itachi.
Itachi, on the other hand, was incredibly insulted yet…oddly turned on. No one spoke to him as bluntly as she did and he was intoxicated. He watched her back as she walked towards another group of people, raising her champagne glass with theirs.
Snapping back to reality, Itachi chuckled, "Now, little brother, why have you not introduced me to her before? You know she's my type."
Sasuke rolled his eyes and retorted, "Because she's out of your league, that's why."
"I highly doubt that." Itachi crossed his arms. "Apparently, I'm quite a catch."
Naruto scoffed. "Says who? Oh, and your mother doesn't count."
Itachi ignored Naruto's jab and continued, "Doesn't matter. She'll get acquainted with me soon."
Naruto and Sasuke raised an eyebrow in confusion.
"Oh, did you not know? Uchiha Pharmaceuticals was looking for a new business partner to increase publicity and reach over Konoha." Itachi stifled a chuckle as he noticed his brother and his brother's friend grimace. "What better way to gain better publicity and income than partnering with a small, but influential company like Haruno Pharmaceuticals?"
"That depends on if they accept your offer, Itachi. Don't get too cocky," stated Sasuke.
"Ah, yes. True, but I'll makes sure the deal is so good that they'll have no reason to refuse," jested Itachi. Naruto and Sasuke rolled their eyes at Itachi's annoyingly over-confident attitude. Finishing his glass of champagne, Itachi lightly chuckled, "As you were, little brother." Raising his empty glass to them, he grinned and walked away.
The last thing Sakura wanted to see was Uchiha Itachi, but unfortunately, that's what she got when she walked out onto the balcony. The air was stiflingly warm inside and Sakura was a sucker for star gazing.
She looked at Itachi as he stared off into space. Interestingly, maybe Itachi was just as star-obsessed as she was.
Sakura silently leaned against the balcony bars next to him and pointed, "See those stars up there? That's Andromeda."
Itachi followed her finger to the stars she was pointing at. Curious, he inquired, "Andromeda?"
"Andromeda, the daughter of a queen who claimed that she was the most beautiful woman in the world." Sakura tucked a couple fly-away hairs that danced in the cool evening breeze. "The queen boasted that she was the most beautiful creature in the universe and thus, the gods were angry and punished her by commanding the queen to sacrifice her daughter to a sea monster."
Impatient, Itachi persisted, "Did Andromeda die?"
A soft giggle escaped Sakura's lips. "No, she didn't. Perseus, a hero, swept down and saved her. He made her his queen and everything."
Sighing, Itachi leaned against the railings. "And whatever happened to her mother?"
"Her mother was punished, of course." Sakura pointed at another constellation. "The gods took her and chained her in the heavens, just like she did her own daughter."
"Do you think the gods were cruel to her?"
Raising an eyebrow questionably, Sakura said, "To the queen?"
"Yes."
"No, not particularly." Sakura, still leaning against the railings, faced Itachi. "She was an envious, pompous woman who let her superficial attitude get the best of her."
Itachi chuckled, "Is it so wrong to say that one is beautiful?"
Sakura pointed at the sky and inquired, "More beautiful than the gods?" She looked at the sky. "Saying you are better than your maker is considered snobbish, don't you agree?"
"Yes, I suppose so," stated Itachi, "but I commend the queen for her bravery."
"Bravery?"
Itachi turned to face Sakura as well. "Yes, her bravery. The queen must have had enormous confidence to claim she was more beautiful than the gods."
Sakura was astonished. This man was defending the queen over ultimate, universal power.
"She didn't let fear of the gods rule her life. She rose above it and defended what she believed to be so—her beauty. Arrogant as that may be, she never backed down from her beliefs," thought Itachi. He gently reached for Sakura's hair and tucked a few back behind her hair. "Isn't that something that should be commended?"
Sakura blinked silently at Itachi, absorbing what he said. "Fear of our maker is what keeps us alive, Itachi. And besides," muttered Sakura, "she was punished in the end."
With a smirk, Itachi murmured, "Better to meet our maker with a little fight in our spirits." He watched as Sakura's eyes twinkled with interest and curiosity. How beautiful they were.
He pulled himself from her gaze and began to walk back into the party. Before he entered the ballroom, he turned to face Sakura. "You shouldn't let fear define who you are or your beliefs. If you think you're more beautiful than the gods," called Itachi, "you should scream it to the heavens."
Sakura watched as he strode back into the room, greeting guests with a charming smile. His long, ebony hair swung gently on his back in an elegant tie and his suit fit him like a glove. Broad shoulders, tall stature, lovely hands, and—
She froze.
Damn.
Sighing, Sakura gazed into the sky. She felt her emotions run rapid within her, even to the point where it scared her.
It was too late to hide it. Sakura knew.
She was falling for Uchiha Itachi.