A/N Hey everyone! I got this little idea when my shuffle spit this song at me. The lyrics were perfect for a SasuSaku fic, and seeing as they're my fav couple I couldn't really resist the urge. This is how that urge turned out.
Warning: OOC-ness and coarse language. Just so you know.
The title is a song title by All That Remains, and I don't own it.
Everyone in the vilalge was getting worried about Sakura Haruno. Ever since 'the Uchiha' left, she hasn't been the same. It was like something died inside of her. Her eyes were empty, her smile was fake. She was an empty shell.
She had stopped living. She just existed.
Even Naruto, the blonde hyperactive idiot and one of her closest friends, couldn't snap her out of it. Soon, he gave up trying, as well as the others, while she was wasting her days away in her apartment. The only thing that always reminded people of her existence is the loud, blearing music, loud enough to echo through the walls.
Sakura lay on her bed, void of any emotion. Her mind was replaying that evening. The evening her life left her. The moment he had taken away her soul along with him on his journey for power.
"Sasuke..."
The songs switched, and she let out a dry laugh at the irony. This song perfectly described how she felt.
I watched you walk away
Helpless, with nothing to say
I strain my eyes
Hoping to see you again
This is my curse
the longing
This is my curse
time
This is my curse
the yearning
This is my curse
There is love burning to find you
Will you wait for me?
Will you desire?
Your silence haunts me
But still I hunger for you
Tears fileld her eyes. Every single word just perfectly fitted in the situation she was in. How he was ever-present in her dreams, while she didn't want him to be. How her mind always drifted off to him, while he didn't so much as acknowledge her feelings.
Bastard.
This is my curse
the longing
This is my curse
time
This is my curse
the yearning
This is my curse
There is love burning to find you
Will you wait for me?
Still I want
And still I ache
But still I wait
To see you again
Dying, inside, these walls
Dying, inside, these walls!
And I see your face in these tears, In these fears
And I see your face...
There is love
There is love
There is love
There is love
There is love
There is love
There is love
There is love
Sakura buried her face in her pillow, muting her sobs as she couldn't bear to think anymore. She didn't bother to wipe her tears of her face as she grabbed a bottle of sleeping pills. She would need those, if she wanted to catch any sleep at all.
Sasuke ressted his head against the wall while turning up the volume of his stereo. He didn't know how it happened, or why, but it was getting worse, to a point where he couldn't think straight any more. He pressed 'play', without knowing what disc was in the drive, and looked up slightly freaked out. This just couldn't be a coincidence.
Our time has ended
I feel it's only just begun
And I'm frustrated
I can't believe you're not the oneThe clock is ticking
My heart is bursting through my chest
And now I'm crying
The tears are pouring off my face
My ears are bleeding
Her voice resides inside my head
And now I'm choking
Release this noose around my neck
Will I just fall to pieces
Or am I alright?
To iron out my creases
You must lacerate me till they're gone
These are my final words to you
I know you're listening can you, hear me?
The time has come to say 'goodbye'
These are my final words....to you....
He couldn't believe it. He cried. Him. Uchiha Sasuke, crying. But he didn't care, and let the tears flow as the song kept pounding the truth into his ears and brain.
The chair is creaking
Her voice resides inside my head
And now its over
You put this noose around my neck
Will I just fall to pieces
Or am I alright?
To iron out the creases
You must lacerate me till they're gone
These are my final words to you
I know you're listening can you hear me?
The time has come to say 'goodbye'
These are my final words... to you…
Heaven, Where is my angel?
I need her now, HOLDING ME!
Heaven, Where is my angel
I need her now... Holding me... TONIGHT!
'I want her, I need her, and I tossed her aside....I had her, but didn't want to see I could.'
He banged his head in his pillow.
'I'm such an idiot.'
Will I just fall to pieces
Or am I alright?
To iron out the creases
You must lacerate me till they're gone
These are my final words to you
I know you're listening can you, hear me
The time has come to say 'goodbye'
These are my final words... to you…
He looked up, eyes still stained with tears. This was it. He was through with the snake. He has everything he needs...
Back in Konoha.
Back home.
That was the night that Uchiha Sasuke had mysteriously disappeared, only to turn up a few days later.
On the Hokage's doorstep.
"Sakura!!"
Naruto banged on her door, but she couldn't hear him over the music. He banged harder, and called louder.
"SAKURA!! Teme's back!!"
When he still got no response, Naruto took a step back and kicked the door out of its socket. He found her hanging on the couch like a rag doll, with the music close to max volume. Naruto hated this kind of music. It was so...
Depressing.
Which was the main reason she had started listening to it.
When Ino once asked her about it, she shrugged. She had said it reflected how she felt. It made her forget her own pain, as if the music drew it out of her and carried her burden as long as it played.
Naruto browsed through the pile of CD's, disgust growing on his face. Bullet For My Valentine, In Flames, As I Lay Dying, Killswitch Engage, All That Remains...
Disgusting.
He looked to the pitiful girl. "Who are you?"
She looked up at him. "What do you mean? You even forgot who I am? Are you really that stupid?"
"That's not what I meant. I meant who you have become."
"Not following you."
"Look at you!" Naruto yelled. "You're not the Haruno Sakura I fell in love with! You're a broken shadow, a ghost! What happened to you?"
Sakura looked back up at the ceiling. "Sasuke happened."
He rolled his eyes. "Him again? Get over it, he's not co--" He fell silent. He mentally scolded himself.
'Naruto, you IDIOT!!'
"That's right! That's why I came here in the first place! Sakura, he's back!!"
She glared at him. "Nice try, Naruto. But that's not funny."
"Suit yourself. I'm gonna defend his case. I'll see you at his welcome home-party." He turned around and shot her one last glance over his shoulder. "If you're not squirming in self-pity, that is."
And with that last remark, he left the dumbfounded girl without so much as a good bye. She blinked at the spot where he had vanished in a gust of wind, his trademark Shunshin, realizing he had not been kidding.
Meaning he's back.
'Sasuke.'
Suddenly, her eyes sparked with determination, as she turned off the CD player and tossed the CD caskets with 'her' music in a corner. She quickly threw on something that qualified as clothing seeing how she was in her sleeping attire now, ending up with black skinny jeans, one of her band shirts and black skate shoes (Vans No Skools, to be exact).
Whatever works.
She dashed out of the door, forgetting about locking the door or even closing it. An elder lady living next door wanted to close the door, but then realized there was no door. She shook her head, muttered something about youngsters and walked past the unguarded apartment.
"Traitor!"
"Coward! Fucking coward!"
Sasuke closed his eyes and lowered his head. Villagers...They could be so annoying, but it was allowed this time. He was ready to take the full blame for his actions.
Which probably meant execution.
Fine, as long as they granted him his last wish: see her one last time.
Sakura.
One word, one tiny word, one name that permanently bound him to this village, whether he wanted to or not. He realized now how stupid he has been the past four years. He wasn't in his right to call Naruto an idiot any more. The biggest fool was he himself.
Countless unknown officials testified, some for his freedom, others for his execution. He didn't care. All he could think was Sakura.
The familiar voice surprised him. He looked up, but was met by utter blackness. He was blindfolded for safety measures. No surprise. He was an Uchiha after all, a carrier of the Sharingan.
Lady Hokage sighed. "State your name and relationship to the defendant."
"Uzumaki Naruto, former teammate and best friend of Uchiha Sasuke."
"I assume your pledge will be for his freedom?"
"Yes, ma'am."
"Fine...Go ahead."
Naruto took a breath. "I've known Sasuke since we enrolled in the academy. We were rivals, enemies, yet best friends at the same time. When we gratuated and were put on the same squad, that bond strengthened."
One of the officials interrupted. "We're not here to rack up memories, Uzumaki. Get to your point."
Naruto shot the guy a glare. "As you wish. Sasuke may act like the anti-social, egotistic person, but I, who have known him for so long, know that he isn't. He may have left and joined the enemy, but with a reason. He wanted to help defeat one of Konoha's worst enemies, known as Akatsuki."
Sasuke could feel Naruto's eyes boring into him, and he wished he could look back at them. Damn blindfold.
"Besides, because of his ties to Konoha's other enemy, Orochimaru, he holds vital intelligence on the aforementioned. It would be an act of immense stupidity to seal his lips with death."
Sasuke blinked. Since when did Naruto become such a smooth talker?
Konoha officials were discussing Naruto's words, until they came with an ultimatum. Sasuke heard one of the guys stand up.
"After hearing all different pleas and discussing the matter, the court decided to charge Uchiha Sasuke with treason and multiple assault on Konoha forces. However, in exchange for all intel the defendant posesses on the criminal known as Orochimaru, the court is willing to carry out minimal punishment."
Sasuke was hit with happy surprise. Minimal punishment probably meant mission probation and comunity service or something. He'd survive that.
Sasuke stood up. "I, Uchiha Sasuke, accept the court's conditions. In exchange for all intel I have on the snake, I'll take minimal punishment."
The Hokage spoke up. "All right. Ultimatum accepted. Uchiha Sasuke is free from further charges. Punishment will be discussed after fulfillment on his end of the bargain. Case closed."
He smirked tired. He had just gone through four hours of non-stop crossfire of questions. But now, he was a free man again. If he wasn't Sasuke, he'd cheer.
He looked at the sky, bright blue with no cloud in sight. He chuckled as he imagined the lazy Nara boy complain about not being able to watch clouds. Then, the Yamanaka ditz would smack him for complaining about something so stupid, and Akimichi would just stand there and eat. It was like that in every team. That Tenten chick would hit Bushy-brows for doing something stupid, while Hyuuga just shook his head and watched. Like he himself would when Sakura smacked the Dobe.
He bumped into someone and they fell over. Sasuke, upon deciding it would be good to build a reputation, apologized.
"I'm sorry. I wasn't paying attention."
"Sasuke-kun?"
Oh, shit.
Sakura.
He eyed her, unbelief and fear growing in him. What happened to the happy, caring person she once was? Who was this girl?
"...Sakura?"
She glared at him. "The bastard remembers my name."
'Of course I remember it, it's the only thing that I wanted to remember about this village,' Sasuke thought. He didn't voice it, though, he was too lost in her eyes. The eyes that always had him spellbound before, were now empty. The happiness and mischief they once held were gone.
"Hn."
Way to go, Sasuke.
She stood up, turned around and left, without a word. Sasuke watched her go, unbelief present on his face again.
This time, he really fucked up good.
Sasuke dumped his body on a stool next to Naruto at Ichiraku's. He ordered a bowl of plain ramen and looked to Naruto.
"Yo, dobe. I gotta talk to you."
Naruto finished his food before answering. "Pay for my ramen, and I'm all yours."
Sasuke shot the blonde a glare, and sighed. "Fine."
"Old man, you heard it! Another bowl of the same please!" Naruto smiled like a little kid once he got his order, devoured it, and looked back up at the Uchiha, his face serious. "Alright, what's up?"
Sasuke looked down to his bowl. "It's Sakura."
Naruto's face dropped even more. "...Ah."
Taking this as a sign to continue, Sasuke turned around to lean on the bar. "What exactly happened to her? She changed."
Naruto snorted. "Yeah, she changed alright. Reason? You."
"I should've known."
Naruto looked sad. "Once you left for the snake bastard, she broke. She was trying to hide it at first, but every time I walked past her apartment I could hear her crying. Every now and then I checked up on her, and she always cried herself to sleep. Then she discovered that horrible music."
"Hm?"
"Disgusting metal stuff. I don't know how to describe it, but it completely destroyed her emotionally. She was getting on par with Neji on robotness." He stopped to think for a while. "She said it helped ease her pain, but I think it's bullshit. Most of the stuff hurt her even more."
Sasuke sighed. Getting her to live again would prove challenging. "So what do you think I should do about it?"
Naruto shrugged. "Dunno. You're the genius. Figure it out." He frowned, as if he realized something, and looked back at him. "Why do you care in the first place?"
Sasuke smirked. "Took you long enough." He looked up. "I guess I cared for her all along, but I didn't want to. I realized my mistake a few days ago. Actually, the music made me realize."
"Music?" Naruto gave him a weird look. He nodded.
"Music. 'Her Voice Resides' by Bullet For My Valentine." Sasuke took out the iPod he had snatched from Kabuto once he had killed him and handed it to Naruto. "Should be on there. Anyways, I just couldn't forget about her and I realized I had everything I ever needed back here. But it turns out I destroyed that myself..."
"Mmhmm..." Naruto muttered, concentrating on the machine he was holding. Once he found the song, he pressed 'play'. His eyes widened. "Ah!"
Sasuke looked up. "What?"
"This is the stuff Sakura listens!"
"For real?"
"Yeah! It drives her neighbours crazy. She blasts that stuff full force, until like two in the morning."
"Thanks, Dobe" Sasuke muttered as he got up and dashed off. Naruto blinked.
"What the -- You'd pay my ramen!"
Sasuke could hear the familiar riffs from a distance, the source being a tiny apartment. He walked over to it, and noticed how the door was lying on the ground. Thus, he didn't bother to knock and walked right in.
"Sakura?"
No response.
He sighed. Of course not. What did he expect?
He walked over to her stereo and turned it off, ending the hardcore riffing of In Flames' 'Take This Life'. He snorted once he thought about the title.
'Appropriate, huh? I did take her life with me when I left.'
He ran his hands through his hair in some sort of unsure, self-degrading desperation. His mind warped back to the task at hand: find Haruno Sakura and tell her whet he just told the Dobe. He looked back to the stereo and smirked.
Maybe that just might work.
He looked up Bullet For My Valentine's latest album 'Scream Aim Fire' and put it in the drive. He browsed throug the tracks until he found what he was looking for.
This oughta draw her out.
She glared at nothing in particular, outright refusing to kick the unwanted visitor out. It was probably Naruto of Ino. Her so-called 'best friends'.
Yeah right.
Were they there for her when she needed them? Were they there when she was going throug hthe depression, the hell of losing your love?
'Oh, they were there alright. You were just too selfish to let them into your life. You were scared. You still are. You're a coward, Sakura. You're weak.'
Her eyes widened in shock.
'You're annoying.'
Why was the voice of her mind speaking with Sasuke's voice?
The music stopped, and she glared at the door. Soon, a blonde would come knocking on it, urging her to get out and let them help her.
She'd kindly tell them to get the fuck outta her house and just leave her be. Like always.
So what if she was scared? She had a valid reason! Because what happened the last time she trusted her life with someone, someone she loved?
He tossed her aside and left her.
And now he returned, he just wants to pretend like nothing ever happened? Forget it.
Just as she started wondering when the blonde would start knocking, a new song started blasting through the apartment full force. Moreover, it was one of 'her' songs. Which dropped the chance of Naruto or Ino being here to close to nothing, if any at all. Curiosity got the better of her, and she unlocked her bedroom door.
There, in the middle of her living room, was Sasuke.
He counted down. Three, two, one...there she was. Surprise was all over her face, as she just blankly stared at him. He motioned her to come sit down, and she obliged, much to his and her own surprise.
The song played on, and Sasuke started to sing along with it.
Forever and always...
That time is here again
Prepare to be apart
And it drives you crazy
Each time I go away
The distance gets longer
But it makes us stronger
Should it all come crashing down around me
Would you be there should I stumble or fall?
To pick up the pieces...
Woooo ohhh ohhhh
Forget about the shit that we've been through
I wanna stay here forever and always
Woooo ohhh ohhhh
Standing here in front of all of you
I wanna stay here forever and always
These days are dead again
It's empty from the start
And it drives me crazy
The hours drifts away
It hurts to remember
This will soon be over
Should it all come crashing down around me
Would you be there should I stumble or fall?
To pick up the pieces...
Woooo ohhh ohhhh
Forget about the shit that we've been through
I wanna stay here forever and always
Woooo ohhh ohhhh
standing here in front of all of you
I wanna stay here forever and always
Forever and always...
Forever and always...
Woooo ohhh ohhhh
Woooo ohhh ohhhh
Woooo ohhh ohhhh
Forever and always...
Woooo ohhh ohhhh
Woooo ohhh ohhhh
Woooo ohhh ohhhh
Forever and always...
She looked at him, tears in her eyes. Sasuke smiled.
"That's how I feel, Sakura. I wanna stay here, forever and always. I wanna forget about the past, and concentrate on the future. Our future."
She couldn't think of anything to say or ask, so she sticked with "Why, Sasuke? Why now, all of a sudden?"
He looked her in the eye. "This isn't all of a sudden, Sak. It's been going on in my head since the day we were put on team 7."
"Then why turn me down time after time!? Why hurt me that much, if you care so much about me!?"
He looked down. "That's what I want to know, too." He paused. "The only excuse I can come up with is my unsure future. I had to take care of Itachi, and I didn't want him to use you against me. No, how should I say this...I didn't want you to get hurt by him because of me."
"..."
She was speechless. What was this guy thinking? That she was a helpless little girl that needed saving?
'Hate to break it to ya, darling, but you were at the time.'
...Oh yeah. That's right. She had been that little damsel in distress.
"However," he continued, "I spoke to a few of the guys about you, and I know how strong you have become. How you're a medic and all now. I know you can take care of yourself now."
He looked her in the eye. "Sak, I know this little confession doesn't make up for everything I've put you through. But please, give me another chance."
Sasuke laid on his back in the grass, arms folded behind his head. He had just gone through 2 hours of non-stop sparring with the Dobe. The sun started to set, lighting the sky a bright orange-red color. He knew Sakura liked that color. He tilted his head to the right, where he heard footsteps. He smiled.
She laid down next to him, resting her head on his arm. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders. They remained like that for a while, until she spoke up.
"I love sunsets. They're so beautiful."
He kissed her hair and said "They're not nearly as beautiful as you."
She smiled. "I love you."
He looked back at the sky. "I love you too, Sak. Forever and always."
She snorted. He gave her a weird look, and she giggled.
"It's not like that, Sasu-kun. It's just that it's weird. Two weeks ago, I had completely given up on you. You were my curse, my poison. Everything about you had a bad effect on me. And look at us now."
"Ah." he replied, overthinking the past events. "I used to think I had severed everything that tied me to the village. Until I met you that day Naruto had gone into four-tail mode. That look in your eyes...it made everything I had worked so hard to forget, flow right back into my mind." He paused. "Soon, I numbed my brain again, and I repressed all urges I felt to just run back to you guys. But there was this one thing I just couldn't forget."
"What was that?"
"You."
She stared at him. "Me?"
"Yeah. How much I tried to forget about you, I just couldn't. Your voice had locked itself in my mind permanently, growing stonger every day, to the point I couldn't take it any more. So I just...left."
"I don't think you just left like that" she said, a glint of mischief in her eyes. He smirked.
"Well...I killed off the snake and his slave first. So you're right."
Silence. They both looked to the now-visible stars and full moon, intrigued by their beauty. The moon was glowing a faint red, which reminded her of something.
"What are you going to do about your revenge?"
He didn't answer for a long time. "We'll see about that. I think I just might need you guys' help after all. Everything the snake really taught me are a bunch of summons and a shunshin. I made up the rest of my techniques myself. Basically, my training trip was a complete fail, so now that I sum it up like that, I'm gonna need it for sure."
"We'll always have your back, teme" a new voice, Naruto's, said from a distance. Both love birds looked up at the blonde.
"When did you get here?"
He shrugged. "A while ago." The blond and raven haired boys exchanged meaningful looks. "We're friends, Sasuke. We look out for each other. We'll help you beat that bastard into the ground. We're there for you."
All three of them knew exactly what the other two were going to say, and smirks were creeping up their faces.
"Forever and always."
Holy hell, this turned out to be longer than expected. I loved writing this. I think it turned out pretty awesome. Sakura as an emo girl somehow works really well in my evil mind, and Sasuke's just finally accepting what he has been feeling all along imo.
In case you don't feel like scrolling back up, here are the songs in chronological order:
Killswitch Engage - My Curse
Bullet For My Valentine - Her Voice Resides
In Flames - Take This Life
Bullet For My Valentine - Forever and Always
All songs are property of respective copyright owners, and none of them ae mine.
Rock on!
~LazyNinja