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Uchihawk [premium member]
+PainTool I like her food.
"Is it Uchiha Itachi?"
"No."
Despite it being only early September, it was already sweater weather season in Konohagakure, much to Haruno Sakura's dismay. It wasn't that she didn't like autumn - she could find beauty in any season, really – but she preferred the unforgiving, scorching summer sun to the cold, drab autumn fog that slowly crept down the streets of her hometown. Pulling down the sleeves of her two-sizes-too-big cardigan she looked up at the sophisticated crystal chandeliers and smiled. Even if it was cold outside, it'd always be sunny in her favorite makeup shop.
Over the past few months Rhapsody House had become a second home to Sakura and her best friend Yamanaka Ino as they worked together on making YamanakaHana - Konoha's most popular lifestyle, vlog and beauty channel - even more popular. Breathing in the mixed scents of bold perfumes and sweet lotions, subtle hand creams and harsh nail polishes, the same scents that once made her sick to her stomach – it was ages ago, Sakura pondered, the first time she had set foot into Rhapsody House – the pink haired girl looked at her friend who eenie-meenie-miney-moed her way through fifty-two shades of number 4, rejecting lip tint after lip tint in the pursuit of the one. A serene smile graced Sakura's lips and their eyes met for the briefest of seconds before Ino returned her gaze to the shelf in front of her, the beginnings of a grin tugging at the corners of her pale lips.
Yes, things were finally looking up for Ino.
With her fingertips grazing over different blush and foundation brushes, Sakura willed herself to remember a rainy day in February when Yamanaka Inoichi vanished from this world in a blink of an eye, and his little Violet, his daughter whom he held so dear to his heart, wilted. It had pained Sakura to see Ino so broken, but she didn't know how she could help her best friend. She wasn't as strong and confident as Ino, she didn't have the same talent of cheering people up. But Sakura was patient, and she knew she could come up with something, she only needed time. So Sakura waited.
And waited.
And…waited.
And finally, one sunny day in May, after Ino had broken it to her mother that she could not and would not continue her studies in psychology, Sakura was struck by an unconventional, yet wonderful idea.
Sakura had heard it from Uzumaki Naruto sometime in March; a new video-streaming website would be launched mid-May that wasn't exclusive to one country only like the previous ones were, but streamed internationally. And thus, Sakura came up with the idea of a vlogging and beauty channel for Ino.
Needless to say that Ino didn't like the idea at first. She didn't understand why her friend thought it was 'awesome' to share personal thoughts and feelings with thousands of strangers. She would throw words like 'illogical' and 'nonsense' at Sakura's head, but the pink haired girl was persistent and after a few days of consideration Ino gave in.
On the last day of May YamanakaHana was created, and in early June Sakura heard Ino laugh for the first time after her father's death - over a comment on her first makeup tutorial, no less.
In early August Ino's channel had passed one million subscribers, which wasn't surprising considering that YamanakaHana was one of the few channels of its kind on the relatively new website. Needless to say the blonde was ecstatic and her popularity skyrocketed after YamanakaHana was featured in many women's magazines. Since then not a single day had passed without Ino thinking up new concepts and making new videos for her subscribers, who constantly supported their idol with videos of their own or encouraging comments.
Speaking of comments…
"But it has to be Uchiha Itachi", Sakura said with her nose buried deep in the high collar of her sea foam green turtleneck, as she examined a glaringly red tube of BB cream. Her best friend stayed silent and – having moved on from the lip tints - played with various blush, bronzer and highlighter testers, blending together light and dark colors on her dainty, pale hand.
"Ino!"
Putting the testers back into their place with a giggle, Ino turned around to face her pink haired friend. She stretched out her clean hand and winked, "Handkerchief, please."
Feeling the need to stick out her tongue at the blond girl, who even had the audacity to start humming a Killer B song as she waited - dainty hand still stretched out, Sakura shoved her hand into her satchel and fished around for a pack of paper tissues she knew had to be in there…somewhere. To Sakura's surprise Ino grew quiet after a few seconds and the pink haired girl picked up a new sound coming from behind her. An impatient tapping - clearly cheap rubber against Rhapsody House's expensive marble floor – echoed through the aisle. Sakura turned around to see Kogure Ami and Akimichi Kasumi waiting for her to move.
"Forehead girl," Ami said with a smug smirk.
"Kogure."
"Oh, look! Pig and her tag along," Kasumi said, and not for the first time had Sakura asked herself how Ino's lovable friend Chouji and this annoying brat in front of her were related.
"What do you think, Kasumi?" Ami asked as she held up two identical colored lipsticks. Looking at Ino with something devilish sparkling in her hazel eyes, she continued, "Which lipstick would be better for my upcoming YamanakaHana inspired makeup tutorial: Babylline's Attention Whore or L'Auréole's Desperate Bitch?"
"Actually, both would suit you well", Ino said leaning against Sakura's back, while the pink haired girl tried to suppress her laughter. Stretching out her arm towards the nearest beauty bar, Ino took a small periwinkle colored eye shadow sample, "And don't forget the eyes! I recommend Saphira's 1.9M Subscribers."
Throwing the little makeup container at Kasumi - who failed to catch it - Ino walked past Sakura, grabbing the paper tissues from her friend's hands in the process.
"This color actually goes well with the lipstick," Kasumi whispered astonished, as she picked up the small sample and Sakura shook her head at her middle school bullies. Picking up the BB cream she had examined earlier, Sakura threw one last look at a furious Ami, before making her way towards Ino.
"Use common sense, Forehead," Ino said as they strolled into the perfume aisle - the previous encounter already forgotten - and it took Sakura a brief moment to connect the dots.
"I used common sense, Pig! Look, the username's Uchihawk - Uchi as in Uchiha, and hawk because the Uchiha family used to own hawks, along with other severely creepy birds if I might add, and Itachi used to take care of them-"
Trailing off, Sakura watched as Ino put a little mint green perfume bottle back on its shelf and picked up a black one to inspect it closely, "For a girl that used to hang out at the Uchiha Compound 345 days in a year you remember surprisingly little about the Uchiha bird farm."
A little frown nestled itself between Sakura's eyebrows, as Ino put the little, black bottle into her hands, "Place it in the basket, please!"
Watching Ino twirl her long ponytail into a messy bun as she headed for the checkout, Sakura frowned deeper and she shifted her gaze towards the small glass container in her hands.
"Crowd," she said, "a weird name for a perfume."
Sakura shook the little bottle around, stirring up the curious, black liquid inside. She repeated the perfume's name a few more times, practically feeling a light bulb flicker on above her head.
She had to give it to her best friend; Yamanaka knew how to drop a hint.
Coming up behind Ino at the checkout, Sakura leaned in until her lips almost touched her friend's ear, "Crows." The girl in front of her shivered and threw a playful punch at the pink haired girl.
"God, Sakura you're such a psycho!"
Unfazed by Ino's comment, Sakura continued, "Itachi used to take care of the crows."
Leaning back into Sakura, Ino whispered somewhat eerily, "And who took care of the hawks?"
A feeling Sakura couldn't indentify – it was something between breathtaking, wonderful excitement and horrible, horrible dread - made her lightheaded and nervous. She could feel her heart beat in her throat and the usually dry skin of her palms glistened with a thin sheen of sweat. Her heart knew the answer, but her mind seemed to run away from it.
"Ino, it's been years-"
"Say it."
"I-"
A halfhearted 'next please' drew Ino's attention to the tired cashier at the checkout and Sakura breathed a sigh of relief. Ueda Fuki had just redeemed herself for the constant forehead jokes in middle school.
Stepping out of the makeup shop Sakura was greeted by a wave of cold, humid air, and the sweet scent of perfume and cosmetics was replaced by the slight smell of rain and a few decaying leaves. She reluctantly set her feet in motion as Ino took her by the hand and dragged her towards their apartment.
"It's Sasuke."
Sasuke.
Sasuke-kun.
Sakura coughed hoping it would lift the weight that suddenly pressed down on her chest, but it was useless. There was no sweet relief from the choking sensation, only small puffs of breath that vanished into the fog. It wasn't supposed to be like this. Sakura wasn't supposed to get a nervous breakdown every time someone mentioned his name. She wasn't supposed to get giddy at the prospect of new information about the youngest Uchiha, either. She was supposed to be cool and aloof, just like him.
Biting her lower lip Sakura squeezed Ino's hand, "Why?"
A small, apologetic smile graced Ino's lips and she pulled Sakura closer to rest her head against the pink haired girl's shoulder.
"I should have told you earlier."
Sakura stayed silent as the heels of her boots clacked against the wet concrete of the sidewalk.
"I noticed it a few weeks ago… His username on my subscriber list," Ino said with a nervous giggle, and let go of Sakura's hand only to hook arms with her seconds later, "At first I thought it was Itachi, but then I remembered his username was iUchiha; so creative, right?"
Ino's forced laughter died down as they stopped in front of their building and Sakura took a deep breath trying to calm down her heart.
"That's not what I mean when I asked you why."
"He has watched all of the videos you're in," Ino said giving her friend a wary smile and tugging her inside the warm, welcoming lobby of their apartment building. "Shikamaru told me, he did this weird hacker thing and-"
"That's not helping, Ino."
No, 'cool' and 'aloof' weren't words Sakura would use to describe herself when she thought about Sasuke. More like 'lovesick' and 'puppy'. Entering the elevator Sakura unhooked her arm from Ino's and leaned her head against one of the mirror walls.
"I told him I loved him," she said and smiled weakly, closing her jade eyes, "and he said 'Thank you'."
"Sasuke always had the emotional range of a plastic bag," Ino laughed and, despite feeling the tears burn somewhere behind her eyelids, Sakura joined in.
"But as little emotion as he could feel," Ino said in a more serious tone, "it was all for you."
Sliding down the elevator's mirror wall, Sakura tried to suppress the sinking feeling in her chest, "Then why did he leave?"
She watched as Ino slowly crouched down to her eyelevel and held out a hand for her. Sakura accepted Ino's hand with a teary grin and let the blond help her up.
"Back then you fainted from anxiety, remember?" Ino asked as the elevator came to a halt. "And he was hell-bent on getting on that last bus," she said laughing as she wiped a little tear from the corner of her eye.
Sakura huffed at the memory as she tried to find the apartment keys in the pockets of her cardigan. "That's not funny, besides… He just left me on that bench," she said and jammed the keys into the lock, "Like, was it too much to call Naruto, or someone - anyone to pick me up?"
"That was a dick move, I admit," Ino said opening the door, "but it was hella funny when those postmen found you and-"
"Enough," Sakura said rather forcefully as she attempted to hit Ino with her satchel. Said blonde only laughed it off.
Entering the apartment Ino shook of her boots and let her leather jacket drop to the floor, much to Sakura's chagrin. The bun she had made earlier collapsed on itself as Ino jumped off to the kitchen leaving her pink haired flat mate to tidy the mess she left.
"Thanks Ino!" Sakura yelled at her and for a brief second she did feel thankful; Ino had somehow managed to make her feel better. Taking off her own boots and cardigan Sakura picked up Ino's jacket and made her way to the kitchen where her friend already started preparing some tea.
"You know, to answer your previous question," Ino said pouring water into her trusty electric kettle, "I don't know why he left like that." Turning on the kettle, Ino took out a small, worn out tea tin from the cupboard above her and turned around to face Sakura who still stood in the kitchen doorway, "But I know one thing, he cared for you more than he did for his own life."
"I don't know," Sakura said and sat down at the kitchen counter next to Ino. She watched as her friend poured the hot water into their favorite cups and over dried herbal leaves from her mother's garden.
"But I do," Ino said, holding out a cup of herbal tea to Sakura, "Imagine how hurt I was watching him fall for you more and more, with every smile you gave him. The only thing I ever wanted was for him to look at me the same way he looked at you, oh!" Ino said, throwing herself over the counter in the most dramatic way she could and burst out laughing, "Don't tell Sai, though!"
I wonder…How he used to look at me… Sasuke-kun?
Sakura took a deep breath to dispel the weird feeling of hope and warmth that had enveloped her heart during Ino's little speech, and shook her head at the energetic blond beside her. Holding out her pinky finger she said, "I promise!" She laughed as Ino entwined her pinky with hers, "It's a promise!"
Everybody in Konoha (and their grandmothers) already knew that Ino and Sakura both had a thing for the youngest Uchiha, but Sai wasn't from Konoha and Ino did everything it took too keep that little tidbit of information from her future boyfriend.
"What are we filming today?" Sakura asked in hopes that she could change the subject. Talking about Sasuke certainly did her no good.
"'Love You, Still' Akiyama Akane inspired natural everyday makeup tutorial," Ino said jumping up from the counter, almost spilling her tea in the process.
"Isn't ' Love You, Still' Neji's new drama," Sakura asked, trying to remember the first few episodes she watched before dropping the drama in favor of her physiology exam.
"It isn't just Neji's new drama; it's the most popular drama currently airing, starring an up and coming actress from Suna - Sakamoto Matsuri! It might even surpass Uchiha Shisui's 'Serene Garden'," Ino said with her hands placed on her hips, and a wicked grin on her lips, "And I'll be damned if I don't jump on the bandwagon!"
Sakura burst out laughing as Ino took the cup from her fingers and dragged her into her bedroom.
"You know the drill, Haruno! Go wash your face and pull your hair back, it's time for some art," the blond said throwing a punch into the air.
It took Sakura less than five minutes to get her face ready but another ten to pull her hair up in an artfully messy bun. Fighting a losing battle with her pink strands she watched as Ino set up the camera and lightening, arranged the makeup and did dozens of tiny adjustments to her room. It was so different from the first time the girls made a video like this; back then they didn't know anything about lightning or editing so their videos looked rather amateurish. Luckily Hyuuga Hinata and Aburame Shino, the main editors of Uzumaki Naruto's pointless prank and video gaming channel, showed them how to arrange everything and edit a video properly. If it weren't for them YamanakaHana probably wouldn't be as popular as it was.
Sitting down on Ino's bed with a bun that looked too messy to be artful, Sakura readied herself for half an hour of sitting still, bright smiles and makeup. That was definitely the worst part of creating a video, since Sakura wasn't allowed to speak and Ino could rant on, ignoring commas and full stops as much as she liked.
"I already filmed the intro, so the tutorial is the only thing that's left," Ino said putting a few wayward strands of Sakura's hair behind her ears.
"We'll start in three…"
Fixing her gaze at a little spot above the camera, Sakura smiled as brightly as she could.
"Two… "
Even your smile is annoying…In a good kind of way.
"One!"
Sakura could feel her heart skip a beat at the random memory, and a faint blush made its way onto her cheeks.
"Woah, tone it down," Ino laughed as she started applying a thin layer of foundation to Sakura's flushed face. "Senpai Sasuke-sama already noticed you, no need for extra blush," she said winking and Sakura suppressed the urge to frown. It was always like this when they filmed tutorials; Ino would say the most ridiculous things and Sakura had to endure it with a smile, then Ino would edit out their conversation and replace it with a pre-made voice over, teasing Sakura mercilessly all the while.
As she waited for Ino to apply a second layer of foundation to her face, Sakura tried to calm down and ignore the fact that Sasuke probably will watch this video, too. Biting the inside of her cheek she tried to imagine Sasuke sitting in an impeccably tidy room, with immaculate navy blue bed sheets and perfectly arranged bookshelves watching a makeup tutorial – Ino's makeup tutorial.
Watching her.
She bit down harder on the tender flesh of her cheek as she tried to not get too excited over the knowledge that, somewhere in Otogakure, the man she still loved – would forever, could never forget – watched her being the most beautiful version of herself. A strange feeling bubbled up in Sakura's chest – was it longing? She only knew that she wanted to see him now, too.
After a few moments of deciding, Ino picked out a light concealer to hide that little childhood scar above her friend's left eyebrow and Sakura thought about the one face that would always be perfect to her, no matter how many scars it had. What did it look like now? Did he get more scars? Or did he finally stop talking with his fists? And that one scar on his nose Naruto gave him a few days before he left; did it heal well? Was it still there, like a constant reminder of his best friend?
Adding a little bit of loose powder to Sakura's face, Ino proceeded to give the eyebrows a little shape. Looking up at the blond, Sakura noticed how oddly quiet her best friend was throughout the whole procedure, and she gave Ino a questioning look.
"It's nothing, really," Ino said with a sweet grin, "It's just… Girl you're glowing! Are you thinking about something nice, hmm?"
Feeling her face heat up under Ino's touch, Sakura looked down on her folded hands in her lap.
"I'm sure that," Ino said picking up an eye shadow palette, "I'm sure he thinks you're beautiful. I know it." Biting down on her lower lip with her eyes closed, Sakura held still as Ino played with different earthy colors and applied them on Sakura's eyelids.
"And I'm sure he misses you," Ino said putting the palette back on her bed and taking a few eyeliners and mascara into her hands, "Look up!"
Sakura did as she was told and upon seeing Ino's peaceful, honest face, Sakura's eyes instantly filled up with tears.
"Don't ruin my hard work, Forehead," Ino said blowing lightly into Sakura's eyes making the tears back away, "We want Sasuke to see just how pretty you can get!"
Careful not to stab her friend in the eye, Ino added finishing touches to Sakura's eye makeup, "I know he hurt you, but… Can you give him a second chance?"
Putting a hand under Sakura's chin she took the lip tint they had bought earlier and covered her lips with a delicate matt color, "Because what guy would sit through hours of makeup tutorials just to catch a glimpse of the girl he likes? Wait, I'll tell you: A guy worth fighting for! "
Looking at Sakura with teary eyes, Ino winked and laughed at her best friend, whose eyes filled up with tears once again. Not wanting Ino to see them, Sakura closed her eyes tightly, causing a single tear to spill out between clenched eyelids.
"Sakura, if you hadn't been so persistent in the past, I would've never made YamanakaHana and would probably still sulk somewhere in mother's house," Ino said and placed a kiss on Sakura's forehead, "I want you to be happy as well, but you can't be truly happy until you clear things up with that Uchiha brat."
In the blink of an eye Ino appeared behind Sakura, placing both of her hands at the sides of Sakura's head, turning it so the pink haired girl faced the camera. With eyes still closed Sakura felt her friend rest her chin on her shoulder.
"This is me saying thank you, for everything," Ino whispered, "Take his breath away!"
Somewhere in Otogakure, in an impeccably tidy room, with immaculate navy blue bed sheets, and perfectly arranged bookshelves sat Uchiha Sasuke watching a makeup tutorial made by two teary eyed friends. It was a recommended video right next to the comment section for Yamanaka's onigiri video, next to a reply he never thought he'd get.
HaruNoSakura [premium member]
Uchihawk Thank you, Sasuke-kun.
a/n: I know author's notes are lame af but I just had to write one. This one-shot is a sequel to Subscribed! and a gift to my wonderful readers, who took the time to read my stories, put them into their favorites, followed them or reviewed them. You guys have no idea how happy you make me day in day out! I didn't want to post this at first because I generally don't do sequels and I was afraid that you guys wouldn't like it, but here I am now and this is my story and I hope you guys enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it for you! Thank you so much!