Disclaimer: Well, I do not own Naruto, and never will. Of course, all rights for the storyline and characters go to Masashi Kishimoto and his editors. The storyline for this was inspired by the anime movie "5 Centimeters per Second"---which I recommend everyone sees.
It was under the cherry blossom tree that we met… wasn't it Sakura? From the moment I laid eyes on you, I had become speechless. We immediately became friends, and our traits were unique, but eerily similar. You remember that, don't you? How we once again crossed paths at Kuriyasami Academy. You were a new student there, and at the time only you and I knew each other…
How it is that moving was so hard for me, Sakura. I couldn't ever tell you how I felt because my mind had yet to comprehend these feelings I'd get from being around you. At the time I was eleven, remember. We had spent a year together in school, and because of my parent's work, I was forced to move away from you. I was forced to leave away all that I knew was beautiful and move on… but I couldn't, and still can't….
She was still in my mind. Every day that passed I had cried myself to sleep thinking about her. All the troubles we'd face with each other, and yet no one to protect her like I always wanted to. Never were we accepted by our peers due to our sickly state; it wasn't permanent, but it did make us alienated. We'd always prefer reading books, staying at the library; never doing any physical activities or being around anyone.
Every day, it was the same routine. It was waking up, taking a quick shower, and getting dressed for my new school. Every day I'd stare out into the sky, letting myself become blanketed by the thoughts that showed still images of the times we'd spend together. In my dreams at night, I see you. I see you just as you were, Sakura. I see us standing under our cherry blossom tree, just like the last day we had together before I left.
Those words that she said to me, I would never forget them…
"You'll be well, Naruto-kun! You'll do well, wherever you are!"
There were tears that streamed down her face, but my pride kept me from releasing the tears that burned my eyes. She was standing outside the car; her hand was opposite to mine on the car window. As she yelled "You'll be well, Naruto-kun!" I looked up, and my eyes had softened. With hesitation, I told her she'd be well. That no matter what, we'd speak to each other again. We'd never lose contact with each other… for a while we sent letters to each other, each one describing how it felt to be going to separate schools, how erratic it felt that I wasn't with her… I never told her this, but I wanted to. The courage in me was gone; there never was anything there for if there were, I would have told her how much I care for her…
Years came and went, and now I was fifteen. And the last letter I received from her was about a year ago… that was until today, when I opened my mailbox and found a letter from Sakura. It surprised me, it honestly did. I hadn't sent a letter to her in well over a year—a box I had was littered in letters that I've written but never sent. I really wasn't expecting her to remember me, but there was the evidence. That letter, boy, how it had me excited. Well, it did at least until I stepped into my room and opened it… the first few words had me grinning from ear to ear; and it read:
"Naruto-kun! Ohayo,
My, I hope you've grown, because I have… and, and… well, I don't know what to write. You haven't sent a letter to me in so long; I just hope everything is all right. One of us should have it going all right anyway…."
There was a word I wasn't able to read, it was smudged, and even thought the date for when it was sent was about a few days ago, there was a fresh stain that could only be a tear. At first, I debated this, but I took a seat against the transparent doors and stretched the letter between my hands. I continued on, my eyes tearing up with every word I read that followed…she wanted me to be with her, to support her because she felt lost without her best friend. That's the synopsis of it, anyway; but I still felt bad. I felt bad because she thought of us a friend, when inside I felt we were so much more. It took me years to finally comprehend what down what track we were heading, but I had to be the one to push that away. All because of my cowardice, all because I couldn't send one of those damned letters. I couldn't tell her that I love her, and as I read on, my day had dimmed.
The room was dark and I struggled to find a comfortable spot were I could fit snuggly and beat myself mentally for what I didn't do for her. She has always needed support, and I neglected it, I only pushed her away, knowing how I felt. Her support for me was always there, and she really needed me to be there for her. And my heart and mind would not let me hear the end; constantly I shed a stream of tears and had both mentally beat myself as well as physically punished myself by banging my head against the wall.
….
Days passed and I began writing a letter, first introducing how school and life had been going for me. The second part took a while because I planned to sneak away from home for a few days just to see her; I told her I'd find a way to see her, and I will. When we see each other, I will tell her everything. I will tell her about how I feel for her and how for the time we'll have together, nothing will ever be so meaningful to me…and I had yet to write this down, but it would soon happen. I will definitely be with my Sakura again. We'll be together… we'll be well together….
Leave reviews and critique. I really feel I need as much help as I can get when it comes to writing stories, so please help if you can... also, please remain moral and respectful; no flaming, please? Just any critiques that can help me improve, thanks!
