Sasori stood in front of the mirror, glaring at his reflection. His unruly hair had absolutely no intention of cooperating today. It had taken him years to work up the courage to even consider asking Karura on a date and now that he had finally steeled his nerves for the actual attempt his own body kept rebelling against him. Between his hair looking like it had spent the last week in a sandstorm and voice cracking with nerves every time he practiced the words that could change his life forever, Sasori couldn't catch a break. Even his hands were failing him. Normally they remained steady even in the midst of even the most horrific of battles, but today they were constantly trembling as if they were made of jelly.
After watching her grandson worrying himself to death over his appearance for fifteen minutes, Chiyo finally lost her patience. "You're never even going to be able to ask Karura anything if you keep fretting so much about what you look like. If she does end up saying yes, it will be because of how you act, not because of how you look." Chiyo grabbed her grandson by the arm and gently but forcefully pulled him away from the mirror despite his protests. "If you keep getting yourself so worked up before you even get to her house, your going to keep blushing until you look more sunburnt that a foreigner. You'd better go now before your nerves stop you. Besides, you've kept yourself waiting long enough."
Sasori ran a hand through his hair one last time in a final attempt to make himself look neat and tidy before being shooed out of the house by Chiyo with a reminder not to worry about coming home late since she wanted him to spend as much time with his new girlfriend as possible. Sasori appreciated her enthusiasm, but couldn't she tell that it was extremely embarrassing to watch his own grandmother acting like his own personal matchmaker. At this rate she'd be expecting great-grandchildren soon. Sasori shuddered. He had never done particularly well with children even when he had been a child himself. At just fourteen years old, Sasori had absolutely no desire to think about having children just yet. Besides, he had enough to worry about without a bunch of snot nosed brats bringing even more stress into his life.
Pushing aside any wayward thoughts regarding what Chiyo pressure him about once he actually started dating, Sasori made a quick stop at one of the few greenhouses in the village. Since only cacti and shrubs seemed to prosper in the desert, any other plants had to be specially cultivated. Unlike most of the greenhouses in the village, this one was not dedicated to growing medicinal plants or ingredients in poisons. Instead, this one only grew flowers. True, it was highly impractical, but it actually was rather popular. Suna had never received many imports which would make suitable gifts, so its inhabitants usually had to rely on things they could either buy in the village or make themselves. Flowers were exceedingly rare in Suna, so they almost always won the hearts of women over both because of how difficult it was t find fresh ones and because their vibrant colors were a much welcome relief from the varying shades of brown that dominated the desert.
Sasori carefully looked over each flower in the greenhouse. Roses were beautiful, but they were too traditional. Daisies would do if he was a few years younger, but they seemed too childish now. Sasori continued examining the flowers, rejecting each in turn for one reason or another until he finally found the perfect ones. Sasori chose to buy a small cluster of violets. Not only did they seem like they would be surprising and original, but they also matched Karura's eyes. Sasori was almost glowing with happiness now. With his newly bought little bouquet in hand, Sasori practically skipped all of the way to Karura's house. After taking a deep breath and praying that he wouldn't embarrass himself too much, Sasori knocked lightly on the door in front of him.
The door was opened much quicker than Sasori had expected only to reveal Karura's younger brother scowling in the doorway. Upon seeing Sasori, Yashamaru's ice cold glare melted only to reveal pity. Sasori asked where Karura was.
"She's upstairs, getting ready to leave. Listen, could you possibly do this another time? Karura is really busy tonight, but I'm sure she would love to hear what you have to say tomorrow."
Before Sasori could respond, a rough hand grabbed him by the shoulder. while another snatched the violets out of his grasp. Sasori frantically tried to take back his gift only to watch in horror as a small cloud of gold dust completely shredded the flowers until nothing but a few stray petals and specks of pollen remained. Yashamaru glared at the imposing figure behind Sasori as the gold wielding man spoke.
"So you thought you could win over Karura with a few plants huh? Pathetic." The man, Takeo, one of the most arrogant men Sasori had ever been forced to work with, sneered before pulling out an extremely intricate gold necklace. "Flowers are worthless and die soon after they are picked. Gold has value and lasts forever."
Sasori was about to yell a sharp retort at his rival regarding how value has a lot more to due with eternal emotions than it does with material objects when he spotted Karura approaching in a long purple dress. She seemed even more strikingly beautiful than usual tonight. Her eyes held a certain sparkle in them; looking for all the world like amethysts except for their gentle warmth. Sasori's tongue seemed to stop functioning completely; he couldn't say a word. Takeo on the other hand had no trouble finding his voice.
"This is for you, my dear." Takeo held the glittering necklace out to Karura, completely ignoring the not-so-subtle disgust and annoyance radiating from Yashamaru.
"It's so beautiful!" Karura put on the necklace, smiling brightly as she carefully adjusted it. "Thank you so much! I can hardly wait to see what else you have planned for tonight." Karura then noticed Sasori standing as still as death nearby. He seemed to wilt as she looked at him, shrinking into himself as he was consumed by his misery. Seeing her friend's distress, Karura tried to soothe him, not knowing that there was nothing she could do at this point to ease his pain. "Sasori, what's the matter? Did something happen?" Karura looks back at Takeo for a moment. "Would you mind waiting a minute? Sasori really looks upset and I don't want to leave one of my friends suffering like that."
Sasori's voice trembled and cracked as he struggled to respond to his beloved. "I'm fine Karura. It's nothing. Don't worry about me. Go ahead and enjoy your night." Before anyone could respond, Sasori ran off into the night. He had waited too long. The only woman Once he was far enough away, he let the darkness of the night consume him as he cried. That night, Sasori closed off his heart to the rest of the world, allowing only himself to know the pain the agonizing wound in his heart caused him for the majority of his life. He only shared his pain and confessed his undying love with another on one drunken night that would cause Sasori even more pain fifteen years after it happened. On that night, Sasori's son, Gaara, was conceived.