i. boo-boos
She runs into the house yelling for Mommy. Big, fat tears roll down her rosy-red cheeks, her long, black bangs sticking to her face. She wails like she's using her last breaths, first into the foyer, then into the living room. When she doesn't see Mommy in there, she bolts into the kitchen like her life is depending on it only to skid to a halt when she realizes that Mommy isn't home.
Daddy is sitting at the table sharpening his weapons when he looks up at her and frowns. Tears are still streaming down her face, more bubbling at her waterline, threatening to gush like a waterfall. She frowns in return, not sure what to do.
Daddy hasn't been home in a while, and, for one, she's surprised and elated. She hasn't seen him in a week, and she loves her Daddy more than she loves her teddy bears, or the training kunai Uncle Naruto got for her. For a moment, the tears cease and her legs propel her toward the young man at the kitchen table, a wide grin splitting across her face. "Daddy!" she screams.
Immediately, he opens his arms and lifts her into his lap and smirks. Children are so fickle. "Hello, Sarada."
"Daddy, Daddy, you're home!" she shouts, and her chubby hands reach for his face. He gathers one in his large hand while he lets the other scavenge his features. "I missed you!"
"I missed you, too," he says. He stares at the beautiful toddler in his arms for a moment with a face like her mother's and his dark, dark hair, and smiles softly. She's covered in dirt, and her hair is thick with sweat. Tears stain her cheeks like cloth, rosy red from stress. "How are you feeling, Sarada?"
She stares at him in wonderment for a moment, eyes wide and sparkling, before her frown sets back in. He sees the tears begin to well in her eyes once more and worry sets over him as quickly as a sun shower. Before he can even say another word, she starts hysterically crying.
He frowns and looks over her once more. He finally notices the deep cut on her knee caked with dirt, blood rolling down her shins. It isn't bad, and isn't even close to some of the cuts and bruises he gets while training, but he understands the discomfort she must be feeling.
For a moment, he's unsure of what to do. He thinks back to his own father who often told him to, "suck it up, there will be worse injuries you will suffer as a shinobi!" He'd set off to clean the cut himself, something his brother had taught him, and then continue with his training like his father pressured.
He smiles softly, and stands up from his chair. "Daddy will take care of you, alright?" he says sincerely, eyes gentle.
She nods her head and vigorously rubs the tears out of her eyes that just keep coming.
Sasuke sets her down on the kitchen counter and begins rummaging through the drawers around the kitchen. He knows Sakura has to keep bandages around here somewhere; if the medic in her doesn't, the mother in her certainly will.
Opening a cabinet, he finally finds what he is looking for. He quickly soaks a washcloth with water, and grabs the bottle of antiseptic from his own pack before stationing himself in front of his young daughter. "Does he it hurt?" he asks.
"Yes, Daddy," she says, frowning.
"Daddy is going to make it all better, okay?" he says. He wipes the dirt out of the cut and off of her shin and checks one more time to make sure it's clean. He says, "This might sting a little, okay, baby?" when he applies the antiseptic to her leg, and it does, but she only pouts slightly. He then applies the big bandage to her aching knee and, before setting her down on the ground, kisses it once. He smiles. "All better?" he asks.
She nods vigorously, and suddenly, she's not crying, but grinning. "Yes, Daddy, thank you."
"I'm glad," he says, then clucks his tongue. "Just wait one more second, I have to clean up your face." She's still sticky with tears and dirt. He grabs a clean washcloth and wets it carefully with warm water. He pushes her long bangs out of her face that she insisted on and washes away the tears, kissing each one. "Just as pretty as I remember," he comments when he's done, and she giggles loudly.
He's so preoccupied that he doesn't notice his wife has entered, and has seen the whole scene unfold before her. She smiles softly at her loving husband, and clicks her shoes as she enters the kitchen. "I'm home," she says.
He's barely shocked by her entrance. He inclines his head towards her and smiles a small smile just for her.
She places her bags down on the counter and approaches her beautiful daughter and, though he'd never admit it, doting husband. She presses a kiss to Sarada's temple and a kiss to his lips. Against them, she mumbles, "You're a wonderful father, Sasuke-kun."
And his heart swells.
This will be a series of moments between Sasuke and Sakura, and often their daughter. Had some inspiration in my class. It will be updated often and will be more for my writing skill than anything else, but you'll bet your butts it'll be cute as hell.
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Peace.
