Bottle Caps
by:
Fear Die Rothaarige
She fiddled with the bottle caps spread out before here. There were so many. Each representing someone she had loved. Someone she had lost. So many bottle caps for such a young life. Each bottle caps had a story. Some were sweet. Some were full of sorrow. And some where both sweet and sorrow, bittersweet if you may call it.
The first bottle cap was for her father. She got it the day that they went to the baseball game. They sad sat on the bleachers, roasting in the sun for hours when a vender finally passed by, selling cola in glass bottles. Her rather bought two and told her, "Nothing quite compares to a drink from a glass bottle." They clinked their glasses in a toast and downed the cola. She tucked the bottle cap into her pocket, pronmising to keep it forever. Through out her life she would come to agree with her father on that matter.
The first bottle cap was for the love of a father to his one and only daughter.
The second bottle cap was for Itachi Uchiha. She had headed to the park to meet Ino-Pig so they could play on the jungle gym together. But, as always, Ino-Pig was late. As she waited for the blond she grabbed the dollar her mother had given her before she had left the house. At the store next to the park, she bought a juice. She didn't want the soda to weigh her down while playing. While going to sit on the bench, she accidently hit the juice glass with her foot and all the contents spilled out. The six year old sat there and stared at the juice for a minute before another juice, excatly like the one before, was thrusted in her face. She looked up and saw a young boy, about 12 or 13. "Accidents happen." He said with a smile and left. She called out a thank you and drank the juice. She tossed the glass away, but tucked the bottle cap away, intending to put it with the one from the baseball game. She didn't find out who the boy was untill a few months later he was on the news for mass murdering his whole family, except his little brother.
The second bottle cap was for the kindness of a stranger who was supposedly evil.
The third bottle cap was for the Uchiha left behind, Sasuke. They were 12 and were newly assigned to Team Seven. Naruto was off yelling nonsense about something and Kakashi was late, as usual. Leaving her with Sasuke, alone. After biting her lip, she looked at the boy on the other side. "Hey Sasuke... I'm gonna go to the store right quick... Do you want anything?" She didn't expect anything, but the Uchiha looked at her. "Tomato juice." he told her. She nodded, running off to a convience store close to the bridge. Five minutes later nothing had changed. Sasuke was still leaning on a bridge post, Naruto shouting, and Kakashi M.I.A. After handing Sasuke one of the two tomato jucie's in her hand, she twisted the cap off and sniffed at it, cringing at the smell. Looking up, she raised an eyebrow at how the boy was guzzling the juice. He raised an eyebrow, and she quickly said nothing, drinking her own juice. When Kakashi finally arrived, they threw away their empty or almost empty bottles. But she kept the cap from hers to add to the collection.
The third bottle cap was for trying something new at the cost of her taste buds.
Fast forward a few years and here's the fourth bottle cap, meant for Team Seven. At fifteen, she had never tasted liqour before. She saw her Sensi drinking herself senseless more nights than she was sober. She knew she couldn't blame the poor women. She'd lost so much in the years she was alive. Late one December night she broke into her parents liqour cabinet and studied the drinks slowly before grabbing a bottle labeled No. 7 Tennesse Whiskey. She thought of the many nights her father spent with the drink, bringing a tear to her eye. He had died only a month ago. Grabbing the bottle and closing the door, she exited the house. She found the hill where she wouldn't be disturbed. Deep in the Uchiha compound she twisted open the cap and sniffed the Whiskey. She made a face that read, "How do people drink this shit?" She shaking hands, maybe from the cold or maybe from the numorous ghost stories about the murdered Uchihas, she took a small gulp and gaged. It was bitter, oh so bitter. She chuckled alittle, just like who she'd become.
In three years, Kakashi had ignored her because she was weak, Naruto had gone off to better himself, and Sasuke... The boy she loved had left her on a lonely bench. The memories brought back emotions she had been trying to hide for so long. The love, the hurt, the sadness that she had bottled uhed to her chest inside her young body came pouring out. As the tears raced down her checks like shimmering rivers, she finished the bottle. Laying on her back, the empty bottle clutched in her hands, she looked at the night sky in a drunken haze. The moon and the stars to be leaving her as a small snow flake fluttered to the ground. As more flakes drifted to the ground she wondered just how many people would attend her funeral if she died tonight. She went to sleep and woke the next morning in her bed, the bottle gone but the cap in her pocket.
The fourth bottle cap was for the realization that she was broken.
The fifth bottle cap was for Naruto Uzimaki. Naruto had returned home almost a week ago. What remained of Team Seven had decided to have a small get together. They meet at Sakura's small apartment close to the hospital, in case of emergencies. She supplied her boys with Smirnoff and Jack Daniels. Naruto, being new to alcohol, took the Smirnoff. Though both Sakura and Kakashi took the whiskey, already used to harsh reality of alochol. The three spent several hours drinking and catching up. They shared laughs, smiles, and grins about the times gone by. At about one o'clock Kakashi left, saying he had an early day the next morning. The two teenagers said their goodbyes to Kakashi, them continued to catch up.
Standing on the balcony, enjoying the sweet night air, the two nursed a bottle of Smirnoff together. While she was looking up at the night sky, remembering all those nights she longed for her boy to be back Naruto caught her off guard. "I'll bring him back." he said to her, gazing at the stars with her. "I'll bring him back and we'll all be happy again." She turned and instead of saying something, she placed the drink bottle on the railing, cradling his face in her hands. Sakura closed her eyes, bringing her mouth to Narutos. But instead of catching his lips, she got his check. "That's not meant for me." He kissed her forehead and went back inside. He grabbed his jacket and called to her a goodnight. Sakura picked up the bottle from the railing, then with a swift throw, the balcony was covered in glass and alcohol. Her feet left small bloody footprints as she padded over the glass and picked up the cap from the bottle, tucking it in her pocket.
The fifth bottle cap was for the love of a friend, who knew best.
Her mother was on her death bed, soon after Sakura's 18th birthday. The cancer had eaten away at her slowly. They didn't catch it in time. And so came about the sixth bottle cap. Sakura was curled up in bed with her mother, much like a small child who had had a bad dream. She was dozing lightly, when her mother woke her. "Sakura, will you get me a bottle of water?" she asked in a sleepy voice. Sakura yawned and gently got out of the bed, going to the kitchen to fetch her mother the water. Grabbing a cold bottle from the fridge, she went back to her parents bedroom. Twisting the cap off as she entered the room she turned on the bedside lamp. Looking at her mother, she stopped in her tracks. Being a docotor she knew what death looked like. Her mother had passed on in the minutue it had taken for her to get the water. With a shaking hand she placed the water down and crawled back into bed. She pulled her mother close and cried softly. She was now like the rest of Team Seven. An orphan. A few days later, she found the bottle cap from the water and added it to her collection.
The sixth bottle cap was for the death of the women who gave her life.
Sai looked most at peace in the middle of the night, bathed in the soft moonlight. His face turned slightly towards her, one arm hanging off the side of the bed, the other under the pillow, laying on his stomach. His naked body hidden by the sheets spread out across his back. Sakura marveled at the fact he could sleep so soundly while she sat for hours in the same bed, in the same moonlight, naked as the day she was born, awake. And so came into play, the seventh bottle cap. It was early winter, but it hadn't yet snowed. She slipped gently from bed as to not awaken the sleeping man beside her. After grabbing Sai's over sized t-shirt from the floor then pulling it on, she walked to the kitchen to fetch a drink. She went straight for the liquor cabinet, knowing Sai, he was never low on the drink. It suprised her at the amount of alcohol the young man kept within easy reach. She couldn't say she blamed him. Not after the life he had lived. Yes, alcohol was a bad was to self medicate (mixed with a variety of legal and illegal drugs used to surpress the constant nightmares), but everyone has to cope somehow. Grabbing a bottle of Sake, she closed the cabinet and exited the small kitchen. They weren't a couple. Not really. He was still bad with emotions. She was still hung up on Sasuke, but they helped each other. A friends with benefits kind of deal. The sex was just that, sex. A physical action of pleasure. Both enjoyed it with each other than any partner they had ever had before.
Twisting the cap off, she took a swig while looking out of the window. The city was full of scattered lights. Maybe some of them were like her. Or maybe some of them were a happy couple. There were so many possibilities. Most of which she would never have. She spent a good 20 minutes drinking the Sake and watching the lights before Sai came up behind her. He wrapped an arm around her waist and grabbed the bottle with the other. After finishing the bottle, he nuzzled her neck, pressing his erect manhood to her womenhood. With drunken kisses, they fucked infront of the same window were you could watch so many opportunities. The next day she collected the Sake bottle cap and hid it away with the rest of her collection.
The seventh bottle cap was for those oppurtunities she'd never had.
The dress was made of lace and silk. It was elegant and spoke volumes as to herself. The simple, yet beautiful design was flattering to the young women's frame. Of course her dress was a bit tighter at her waist due to the small bump of a child growing within. The wedding of Sai Hakamura and Sakura Haruno calls for the eighth and final bottle cap. The bridesmaids had all left the room upon Sakura's request to be alone. They all had left, but not before making sure she didn't need anything or that she wasn't about to run away. At her reasurace that she would make it down the isle, they had left her in peace. The child that indrectly caused the union between the two drunks, had been concieved the night of the lights. Four months ago, Sai and herself had fucked up, forgetting protection. Two months later when the morning sickness started, Sakura confirmed her pregnancy and told Sai he was a father-to-be. The young man was happy... To an extent. He had entertained the idea of being responsible for another person with discontent. He was a drunk and addicted to various drugs. He didn't want his child to be raised by a man like himself. And he also did not much care for the idea that (upon discussing it with Sakura) he would have to slack back on missions and such to help raise the child. A few days after decided to keep the child, Sai went to Sakura's appartment. He promptly pulled out a small velvet box and shoved it into the girls hands. After opening the small box to find a diamond ring, Sai explained he wanted to do things right. To give his only child the life he never got to have. A mother and a father, together. The moment she had accepted and he had slipped the ring on her finger, her heart cracked.
Two months later, here she was, digging around her bag for the small bottle of Jack Daniels she had hidden within. She knew it was wrong. She knew they had vowed to quite the drink and the drugs together. She knew that it was bad for the innocent life inside of her, but she needed one more swallow. One more shot of liquid coruage that she had first tasted at the bittersweet age of 15. When the smell hit her nose, she thought back to all those nights she had spent drinking. So many nights spent it a haze due to the horrors of her life. She placed the bottle to her lips and paused. A memory flashed in her eyes of a young Uchiha. It was not long before he had left the village. She had found him all alone at the training grounds, an empty bottle of alcohol beside him. It was Jack, but she had no interest in it then. That night she had sat with him and helped him home eventually. Now she couldn't help but wonder what the young man was doing now. Was he struggling just like her with one of the biggest decisions of his life? Maybe he was living it up, living life to the fullest while in his prime. With an Uchiha, you could never know. A tear slowly worked its way down her cheek at the thought of Sasuke. She loved him so much more than Sai. She loved him like a women was supposed to love a man. She loved Sai, but only because he was a friend and the father of her unborn child. If she had had her choice, it would have been Sasuke standing at the alter, waiting for her to be lead down the isle by Kakashi. It would have been Sasuke's child who was growing inside of her. Everything would be Sasuke. Sasuke. Sasuke. She looked at the bottle of whiskey and down the small amount, apologizing to the person inside of her. Then a tap at the door signaled it was time for her grand enterance. Silently rising, she whipped away the tear and grabbed the final cap. She clutched it tightly in her hand before going to the door. With the brightest smile she could muster, she opened the door, heading towards her twisted future. It was time for to become Mrs. Sai Hakamura, not Mrs. Sasuke Uchiha.
The final bottle cap was for Sakura herself, and the dreams she was tossing away.
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, if I did, would I really be writing angst filled fics about Sasuke/ Sakura?
Please excuse any and all mistakes in grammar in spelling. Its not my forte nor am I completely sober. I hope you enjoy!
Read and Review!
Later!