imperfect:
"What do you know?" Shikamaru had thrown his hands up in frustration. He never got angry with her, but here he was, cigarette stuck in the hard slash of his lips and he was angry with her. "You don't seem to know anything anymore."
That, Ino reflected, had been the moment when it had struck her. Harder than any enemy's fist, it had come hurtling to her lips and she had felt something break inside of her.
The act was no longer an act.
She had gone from the actress to the character.
She had lost herself.
She was no one.
She wasn't perfect in anyone's eyes and she never would be.
It had started as a girlhood ritual. Whoever acted so saccharine sweet and feminine would capture Sasuke's heart.
And she had thought, He won't like a girl smarter than him. Not that I could be anyway.
He wanted an equal.
She thought, what's the point of strength? All I need is beauty.
He wanted someone who he could compete with, someone who could better the both of them.
She thought, I'll do this for love.
And she played her part perfectly; fluttering her eyelashes, cooing silly things, hoping he would find her cute and endearing, brushing her hair and gazing out the window. She'd hope he'd walk by her house, call her out on a date.
He'd wanted someone to chase after him. Someone as determined and passionated as he was.
It wasn't even about Sasuke anymore. It was about everyone. Everyone watching her, judging her, thinking about her, and she wanted them to see... what? What did they see her as? She didn't even know herself. She couldn't call herself anything but a faker.
And Shikamaru, one of the people who truly mattered... He had looked down on her. She had lost his respect.
I can't do this, she thought.
"I can't do this," She said to the empty room. "I can't."
And she put a curtain over her mirror, and put her hairbrush far in the back of her closet.
She watched her reflection in the lake's surface.
Blonde locks wafted through the water, splitting and drifting and washing away.
Slim fingers ran through the spiky crown of hair, and she felt like she was starting a new life. She was a new person.
I will be strong.
I've rinsed it all away.
so:
Heh, I wasn't in the best mood when I wrote this. xD The ending was inspired by Rinse, a song by Vanessa Carlton - she is a goddess, listen to all of her songs. I mean it.
And review, please. I know it's rushed, but I couldn't think of how to fix this any more! I'll come back one day! I PROMISE.
I love reviews. They brighten my day.
And who DOESN'T want to be that delightful little child that brightens people's day?
Thank you,
spiral - chan xoxo
