PCM: I totally rewrote Sakura from rude and temperamental to a shyer version- but if you look closely; she is still the outgoing person. I did this because really, being taken in by a two guys you don't know who are providing you with things and even enrolling you into a school would make you feel awkward- especially since she is a stranger! You wouldn't be rude and witty just yet.
I'm thinking you could make her become slightly more comfortable with the Uchihas later. Also, Sasuke was terribly OOC so I sort of edited him down. If you make him to tease her, I would think Sasuke would do it in private. If you don't like the shy-Sakura edit then send it back and I'll revert her back.
Also, I sort of created a past for Sakura- the line in bold below was hinting that she was bullied at her old school. Don't like? Just take out.
Anyways, yay! You're back- I gotta admit, I really like how this story is beginning to turn out. It's so interesting!
-cat
Ps. As your beta, and knowing you really like Korean music, I highly suggest BoA- her English album just came out :P
A/N: Hm…I don't know. I don't particular like this chapter. Then again, second chapters are always sorta difficult. But I just hope you like it.
And as you can see, my beta left me a love note, haha. (At the top). I don't know if I was supposed to leave it there or not, but I suppose leaving it there won't hurt much. And I agree with her. I'm horrible when it comes to attitude Sakura and a non-OOC Sasuke, ha.
You Don't Need To Ask
Chapter Two
--
"This place is huge!" Sakura exclaimed in awe as Itachi parked his car in the driveway. The two brothers shrugged as they got out of the car. Sakura slowly followed them, astonished by the mammoth house.
"Living here doesn't seem as bad as before." Sakura mumbled.
Sakura gingerly sat on the leather couch, peering at the expensive antiques that surround her. Embarrassment began to claw at her- these men had just taken her, a stranger, in. Itachi looked up from his cell phone.
"Sakura-san, do you still go to school?" He asked politely.
"Of course, Ice-kun! Don't think that I dropped out or anything." The pink-haired girl nodded before flushing at the improper use of his name. The pink haired was an out-going girl; it was by habit that witty remarks flew from her mouth.
"Ice-kun?" He muttered.
"His name is Itachi. And I'm Sasuke. We're not blocks of ice, got it?" Sasuke snapped irritably. Sakura nodded too quickly.
"Yes," She answered her words cautious. "But it's a little over an hour away. By bike I mean, but that really doesn't make a difference…" She thought aloud, keeping her apple green eyes on the plush carpet.
"Then, I guess I'll have to enroll you in Sasuke's school." Itachi said, throwing on his coat. Sasuke nearly gaped.
"What?" Both Sasuke and Sakura gaped simultaneously.
"You can't be serious Aniki." Sasuke's voice was bordering on plead.
"Well…I guess…I have to go to school." Sakura agreed quietly.
"You're probably not even going to go to college." He scoffed under his breath. Sakura heard him. She was quite skilled at deciphering muffled words; she had to endure it previously.
"Shut up." She whispered, her hands balling into fists. She was going to college. No matter what it took.
Sasuke scowled. "You're lucky that you're still alive."
"Please stop the arguing." Itachi said politely as always. "I'm going to go to the high school now. And I expect both of you to be in one piece when I get back." He told them before swiftly walking out the door.
There was an awkward silence before Sasuke stood up wordlessly and left the girl. Sakura finally realized how stiffly she had been sitting and sunk into the couch, contemplating her predicament.
''Tense' isn't strong enough to describe that situation."
"Don't touch anything." Sakura jumped and just briefly caught his feet walking up the staircase, hands shoved in his pockets.
She nodded quietly again, her body molding into stiffness again.
Sakura thought about that maze that was her life.
After begging for how many days and nights to go and study aboard in Japan, she had acquired a very small flat with the help of her parents. She survived with the results of her school, part time jobs and got through the solitude with her medicinal books. Sakura strived to be a neurosurgeon- but that required piles of money Sakura knew she would never be able to hold between her fingers.
Life was tough.
She jumped as a loud chime echoed through the room. She gaze was directly drawn to the large double white doors, engraved with renaissance-like embellishment. Sasuke didn't seem to have heard, but Sakura was repulsed at the idea of calling for him. She highly believed it was Itachi, so she impulsively got to her feet and opened the door.
But instead of the tall stoic figure she was expecting, she received bright cerulean eyes, blonde hair and a grin that stretched from America to Japan. The boy was anti-Itachi.
The boy gaped at her when he saw her. "Uh…are you supposed to be here? Or are you a fan girl who snuck into Sasuke-teme's house?" He asked with wide eyes.
"I, um," She stuttered, flipping through her wide range of vocabulary to look for an appropriate response. "Actually I l-"
"Sakura, go away."
How does he do that? Does this house have secret passages too?
Sakura jumped away. Sasuke's tone was cold. He nudged passed her and towards the blonde boy. The boy put one hand to his chin.
"Her name's Sakura, huh? Teme, she's actually kinda cute…ridiculously shy- like Hinata-, but cute." Sakura's cheeks flushed for the millionth time today. "What's she doing here? Another girl you paid?"
"Actually…I live here." Sakura corrected; her shyness bumped away after the blonde's accusation of being a whore. She was going to be a neurosurgeon dammit!
The buy gasped dramatically, his grin morphing into a large 'o'. "L…live?! Are you his cousin or something? Cause…you two look nothing alike." He said, observing her face closely.
"I-" the boy interrupted her again.
"Oh! I get it; too lazy to find new girls right?"
Sakura wanted the ground to open and swallow her.
"No, you idiot, she lives here." Sasuke muttered dangerously, his eyes flashing. "My taste isn't as bad as yours, dobe."
Sakura threw a glare at his direction but said nothing.
"My name's Naruto. So…I'm guessing you two aren't related?" Naruto asked again.
Sakura shook her head, answering the question. "No."
"Then would you mind telling me the story?" He asked with an eager face.
--
"Suicide?" Naruto shouted, turning towards the pink-haired girl. Shame attacked Sakura. Why was Sasuke telling this story?
"But you're so cute and bubbly looking! I would've never guessed." He said thoughtfully.
"Well, now you know the story." Sasuke said, biting into his tomato. Then, the large door opened and Itachi came in, carrying four female uniforms. He dropped them on Sakura's lap as he walked into the kitchen, along with some paper.
"Hm…you're going to our school? That's so cool! We could be like, best buddies!!" Naruto cheered, running around in circles. Sakura laughed uncertainly at his childish behavior while Sasuke rolled his eyes disdainfully.
She eyed the school uniform. Itachi had given her three of the uniforms and one physical education uniform. She fingered the rich material, mirroring solid water between her fingers. The school uniform was the traditional navy blue color; the skirt pleaded and plaid. A long sleeved blouse hid under a navy vest and the short tie was also plaid-blue.
"No long socks?" She hated to ask, but she didn't have a spare pair.
"It's your choice. Only the sluts wear no socks though." Naruto shrugged. Sakura nodded through her wince at his language. She was definitely going to wear socks.
The PE uniform, on the other hand, was bright yellow. The shirt was short sleeved; in the center was the Konoha High logo. The shorts were snowy white along with a pair of knee-high socks.
"Who invented this uniform? It's disdainful…" She remarked, grimacing.
"Jiraiya- perverted guy I tell you- you'll probably be meeting him on the first day of school." Naruto answered with an eye roll.
"A perverted teacher? This is such a weird place." She sighed.
"You said you only lived an hour away from here. Your place was probably just as weird." Sasuke pointed out. Naruto grinned.
"I…um…thank you for taking me in." She avoided any eye contact and played with the uniform. "I mean, I'm a stranger and well, you could have just left me there and, uh, yeah, thank you."
Sakura suddenly wanted to repeatedly hit herself. She was an A-plus student! Her English grade was above standards! And all she could conjure was that pathetic little awkward-filled sentence?
There was awkward silence until Itachi, silence master, broke it.
"Sakura-san. Do you know how to cook?" Itachi asked her in such a serious tone it was almost funny.
"Um I know how to cook…ramen…and cereal?" She replied with a nervous laugh as Sasuke shook his head in disbelief.
"A girl who doesn't even know how to cook…Itachi, I think we made a mistake bringing her in." Sasuke said. Itachi merely smiled.
"With time, she'll learn." He said kindly towards her. Sakura smiled back. "Yeah, I'll learn." She told Sasuke softly.
"I doubt it." Sasuke countered back. Naruto sighed.
"Look, let's just end the argument, 'kay?" Naruto pleaded. Sakura smiled in agreement, a little smugness creeping in.
--
"Nervous?" Itachi asked Sakura with a kind smile. The said girl fidgeted in the car seat and straightened out her skirt a bit. Despite this, she shook her head.
"I'm fine." She mumbled.
It was still unbelievable; if reality hadn't been twisted that fateful night, she should have been in an orphanage or quite undoubtedly living on the streets; her dreams out of reach.
"Thank you." She whispered, yet it seemed to be inaudible to the elder man.
Finally, Itachi parked by the school and gestured for the two to head out. Sakura let out a deep breath. Sasuke frowned in annoyance.
"Just open the damn door already." He snapped at her. Her fingers shook but she managed.
Maybe fate wasn't really that cruel.
"Thanks, Itachi-kun." Sakura said, smiling. The man gave a curt nod before driving off. Once he was gone, Sakura sighed again and hastily adjusted her backpack straps. Then, she felt a hand drop on her shoulder.
"Nervous?" Sasuke mocked, before walking off. Sakura groaned as she sluggishly trailed after him.
"Sakura-channn!!" Naruto yelled, crashing into her. The girl yelped and fell backwards, landing on her butt. She couldn't find herself to be mad at him though. She took the hand he was offering her and got back on her feet.
"Naruto…you have to be more careful next time." She told him. He was her new friend. She couldn't be mad with him just yet.
"Hey, Naruto! Don't go running off like that again! You know that Chouji can't keep up with you." A boy with red marks on his cheeks said. Behind him, was a worn out, chubby boy.
"I…it's okay…" He panted with his hands on his knees. Naruto laughed.
"Sorry, guys. Anyways, this here is Sakura-chan. Once I saw her, I just had to run to her." He said, grinning.
"Oh…hey, I'm Kiba. Inuzuka Kiba." The boy with the red marks said, smiling. His canine-like teeth sparkled in the morning sun. The chubby boy behind him stepped forward.
"And I'm Akimichi Chouji." He introduced himself as he whipped out a bag of chips from his backpack. Sakura smiled back at the both of them with a nod.
"It's nice to meet you," She said respectfully to Kiba. She couldn't help but add in, "Pikachu-kun," The dog boy gaped.
"P…Pikachu? Look, the marks on my cheeks are triangle shaped, not circles!" He defended, pointing at the marks. Sakura merely waved a hand at him. Then, she looked at Chouji.
"And it's nice to meet you too, Chub"—
Suddenly, Naruto's tanned hand was clamped over Sakura's mouth. "Do you want to get yourself killed? No one calls Chouji 'chubby', or anything near that." He whispered into her ear before Chouji could hear.
"Anyways, what's a girl like you doing here? Especially during the middle of senior year?" Kiba questioned. Sakura smiled uncertainly.
"It's a long story. You really don't need to know." She replied. Before any of them could begin persuading her, she started talking again.
"Oh! I have to go to the office now! Bye!" Sakura rushed before running off. Kiba cocked up an eyebrow.
"Is her story that bad?" He asked Naruto.
The blonde boy sighed. "Er…sorta…kinda." He answered back.
"I wonder what happened to the girl with the inability to speak cohort sentences." Sasuke muttered with his arms crossed as he saw her stumble over a tree branch.
--
"Hello?" Sakura said to the lady at the counter. The lady jumped and dropped all the paper she was holding.
"Oh! I'm sorry!" The lady said as she scrambled to pick up the fallen paper.
"Uh…I should be the one to apologize…"
With that thought, she bent down to aid the scrambling lady.
"Any who…what are you doing here?" She asked from behind her paperwork. Sakura took out some paper from her backpack and set it on the counter. The lady picked it up and observed them. Her eyes lit up.
"Oh, you're a new student? Hm…what a surprise. Anyways, I'm Shizune. Pleased to meet you." She said, smiling up at Sakura. She returned the smile.
"Okay, so just bring this up to the principal. If she isn't there, then go to the vice principal instead." Shizune said, handing Sakura back the paperwork. The pink-haired girl nodded and walked off.
Sakura took her time walking to the principal's office. She marveled at all the pictures and portraits on the walls. There were many black and white pictures, as well as colored ones. There were even newspaper clippings stuck to the walls in fancy frames.
"I shouldn't belong here. But I am." She allowed herself to smile.
Finally, Sakura reached the principal's office. She knew that at least one period had already passed. Taking in a deep breath, she knocked on the door.
A pair of eyes looked at her through a slot in the door. In almost an instant, the door flew open, revealing a big man with long, white hair.
"Hello, little lady! How may I help you today?" He asked her eagerly.
A/N: Well, I'm sure you can tell who that was, ha ha. Anyways, I'm continuing with this story. I've become quite attached to the plot. But I hate the typical high school stuff. Hopefully, I'll move it along to better things soon.
Please review! And thank you to those who reviewed the first chapter!
Also, another thank you to my amazing (AMAZINGLY AMAZING) beta, catwin!
