A/N: Hm, in a way the title of last chapter was foreshadowing. Although unintentionally. Hohoho, go me. Enjoy guys.
I do not claim to own Naruto or any of the characters in this story.
By Disappointment Only
"We're all just looking for someone whose demons play well with ours."
Chapter II
"When our vice leaves us, we like to imagine it is we who are leaving them."
- Francois de La Rochefoucauld
"Sakura, table three is waiting for their subs. They're crunched for time," old man Sozo called back to the kitchen where said pink haired girl stood with a metal trey. Rapidly she loaded several foot and a half long subs on top of the metallic plate; directly from the cook.
"I'm on my way right out with them," she answered curtly. She hurried out of the kitchen, passing by the hostess and grabbing their tab with her free hand while balancing the platter with her other. Upon meandering through other tables and carefully passed other waitresses and customers she finally arrived at table three. Despite the name it was stuffed in the furthest corner of the restaurant.
"Alright guys, here's your subs to go. Can I grab you anything else? Maybe some refills on your soups before you leave?" She asked her customers politely as she gave each sub to the preferred individual. The three gentlemen were some of her regulars, coming in routinely at least a few days a week before their afternoon shifts. They particularly favoured the restaraurant's soup happy hour and and never left without picking up some of 'Sozo-Ryoku's' signature subs for the road.
"No, but thank you Sakura, we appreciate your impeccable service as always," the older of the three men, looking to be somewhere around her father's age, smiled thankfully with a small bow.
"Oh of course Toji, you three are some of my favorite customers," she smiled at him as she fiddled around with her pony tail that had began to fall out.
"Had a busy day, Sakura?" The youngest man asked, his eyes beaming at her. She studied him confusingly.
"Um, nothing abnormal. Why do you ask?" She questioned.
"Well, sorry to be rude but, your skirts a bit… up in the back," he chuckled sheepishly; a light blush tinting his already sun burnt cheeks.
Sakura's hands flew to her behind, only to discover that he was indeed right. The skirt of her uniform had somehow become tucked in the back of her apron, giving a bit of a show of the lower portion of her light blue, silk underwear. Her face went red as she adjusted it.
"Right, thank you Kauru, it has been kind of a busy day," she laughed tiredly, admitting her defeat.
"It's fine, we've all been there," Toji laughed as he pulled out a few bills from his wallet, "have a good rest of your day Sakura. Don't work too hard, and we'll see you tomorrow I'm sure." Sakura mumbled a meek 'thank you' and bowed as they exited the booth. With a sigh she picked up the check and counted the money they left. Total: $45, they left $70. She grinned ear to ear. They had left her with more than a 50% tip. Maybe she would be able to get that haircut soon after all.
Sakura's first week at university had went by surprisingly fast. She assumed this occurence was mostly due to the fact that when she wasn't in class she was working, then when she was at home she was either rushing through homework or sleeping. At this point her downtime was virtually nonexistent. However unlike most people Sakura preferred to be constantly occupied. She detested not being productive, always providing her with a sense of uselessness. It was safe to say she was feeling the exact opposite as of late. The time read one hour and fifteen minutes passed noon. She had technically been off and headed to her last two periods of the week right at noon. Tomorrow would be Saturday and she was scheduled a double, Sunday she was off. She lacked any excitement for time off had become synonymous with homework.
"Sakura, you can't stay any longer? Not even five minutes?" Old man Sozo whined from the kitchen window. Sakura offered him a thin smile as she grabbed her bag from the coat hooks next to the hostess.
"No Sozo, I already stayed 15 minutes later than I should've, I don't even have time to change, I have to get to class," she explained, finally being able to let her hair down now that she wasn't running around the restaurant at 100 miles an hour. "I'll see you in the am!" she called while striding out the door.
Despite her perky attitude and constant smiling mostly fooling everyone, Sakura was well passed the point of exhaustion from a week of running nonstop. Sure, mentally she loved being continually busy; but her body strongly disagreed. Her legs ached like they always did after busy shifts. Her temples throbbed from her jaw muscles tensing up due to her lack of sleep. She massaged them with her index fingers while sitting quietly on the train awaiting her stop. The pinkette had been so busy she had barely paid any mind to Sasuke in class. She was truly proud of her self considering being seated right behind the Uchiha and him regularly making rude off hand comments towards her. When it came down to it she had greatly more important things to deal with aside from him and his constant moodiness.
She ascended up the short stairs that placed her onto the public streets, immediately turning the corner to mosey towards the university as she always did. As soon as she cut in that direction Sakura's head of pink hair collided with someone else's very hard chest plate. She squealed and jumped back a few feet, her skin color now a shade of deep red. Waving her hands frantically in front of her, her word vomit ensued.
"I am so, so sorry! I was in such a rush and wasn't paying attention and," she stammered anxiously.
"What? Don't tell me you're already running late already when it's only your first week of school," a condescending voice mused. Sakura's expression fell immediately as all color drained from her complexion. She gazed up into a pair of cold, dark eyes, adorned by pael skin she knew all too well.
"W-What are you doing here, Sai?" She stuttered, her hands folded nervously to her chest.
"What? Is it a crime to want to surprise my girlfriend?" He cooed, leaning to kiss her on the cheek. She stepped back just in time to dodge him.
"I'm not your girlfriend," she stated, quickly trying to push passed him; but he blocked her, grabbing her arm.
"Don't be silly, Sakura, we've been dating for a year now!" He grinned. She plucked his hand from her forearm.
"Oh yeah? Is that what you call it?" She asked rhetorically, "you suddenly leaving for weeks, sometimes months at a time without not even a single text or call to me? Not even telling me when or if you're coming home? Painting and seeing multiple women at once? Is that what they classify as dating now of days?" Sai's jaw visibly tightened with his beady eyes squinting.
"You're just assuming things again, you don't even know what I was doing while I was on my trips," he argued lowly.
"You forget we have the same friends, Sai. Ino is my oldest friend. Are you actually so ignorant that you thought she wouldn't tell me what you've told her?" Sakura asked, dumbfounded by his idiocy. He stood silent for a moment, his eyes shadowed by his fringe. "I have to go now, I've got better things to do than listen to your half assed excuses," she started, trying to push passed once more. He pushed her to a hault with his cold hand.
"You're just jealous, the same you've always been," he snapped.
"Oh yeah?" She scoffed. "Oh please, Sai, enlighten me as to why I would be jealous of you."
"Jealous that I have places to go because I have a talent I excel at," he seethed, " just like you were jealous of Ino when you two were kids, just like you're jealous of every other person you meet. You couldn't even get into the university's pre-med program because they didn't offer you a scholarship, you only got into nursing. Nursing! You've always been second best. Why do you think it's so easy for people to leave you? You have no defining qualities, that's why." Not more than a second passed before Sakura's palm collided with Sai's cheek, accompanied by a loud 'smack'. She shoved passed him successfully, tears streaming down her flushed cheeks.
He was wrong. He was a terrible person who only used people to his benefit. Yet the words, they stung. Regardless of her mental state she had to get to class. She had to get her mind off of his stupid, pale face.
Sakura traipsed into Psychology abruptly, head down so as not to let anyone see the mascara that had very clearly run down to her chin.
"Nice of you to join us, Sakura," Inoichi commented. She refused to look at him. She simply muttered a quick,
"Sorry, won't happen again," before wandering to her desk. He resumed the lesson soon after. Sasuke's eyes studied her suspiciously, noting her face when she maneuvered passed him. A sudden sense of annoyance flooded over him. Her face was clad with the same expression she had worn first thing Monday. It was the same look she had even shown when they were younger. He grunted and cleared his throat.
"So what have I managed to do to upset you now?" He jeered while she opened up her lap top. He couldn't see her reaction as he pretended to be listening to Inoichi. She didn't reply at first. He could make out the noise of her lap top clicking shut. He assumed he had simply made her so upset that she couldn't fathom a response, when in reality it was actually the exact opposite. He saw Kiba, who sat to the left of him, as his eyes widened and started to yell,
"No, Sakura don-" before he was interrupted by the loud smash of a very, very hard object over the back of Sasuke's head. His vision went blindingly white for a second as a searing pain emanated from the back up his skull into his temples. Opening his eyes he saw double of everything as his head pulsed and throbbed. Sasuke looked up, only recognizing Sakura for the blurred pink hair he could barely see.
"Contrary to popular belief, Uchiha, my fucking life doesn't revolve around you, you incompetent, pretentious asshole!" She whaled, a quake in her voice indicating that she was crying. Not having the heart to wait another second she sprinted out of the classroom. The room was coated in a thick silence.
"Shit, I better call Hinata," Kiba grumbled as he pulled out his cell, proceeding to speed dial a number.
"W-What the hell was that all about?" Sasuke asked as while he slowly gained back his site. He rubbed the back of his head, eying his fingers and seeing blood.
"Probably something to do with Sai," he mumbled. Sasuke looked at him for more information, but the other line of Kiba's call had already picked up. "Yeah, Hinata, Sakura came into class crying. Sasuke made some rude ass comment and she broke a laptop over his head," there was a pause, "yeah that's what I was thinking. You can't leave? Oh, okay. I'll see if I can get ahold of Naruto then." With that the call ended.
"Who the hell is Sai?" Sasuke prodded, agitated by the headache he had developed. Kiba rolled his eyes, crossing his arms and sitting back in his chair.
"Oh cut the bull shit Uchiha, you're only interested because she gave you a head wound and you want to know if it was justified or not," he quipped in annoyance.
"Not just that," he argued half heartedly.
"Shut up, everyone knows you don't care about anyone's wellbeing but your own. Hell, you made it pretty clear just now." Ouch. Sasuke ignored Kiba's comment, focusing back on Inoichi.
"Um, professor, can I go to the nurse?" He asked with a slight raise of his hand. Their professor was still in shock over what he had just witnessed.
"Uh… yeah, that's probably a good idea," he replied, only half there.
Toddling his way into the hallway, Sasuke's real intention wasn't to go to the nurse. Picking his phone from his pocket he scrolled through his contacts, selecting Naruto's name spelled out in black letters. After a few seconds of the dial tone he picked up.
"Oi, professor pervert, why the hell did we have a sub today? You have no right to enforce strict attendance on me when you don't-" He began.
"God damn it Naruto why the hell haven't you saved my contact?" Sasuke interrupted him in anger.
"Whoa, what the hell Sasuke, how'd you get my number?!" The blonde shouted.
"Well dumb ass I got it Monday, remember? I did the normal thing and saved it in my phone. It's not a fucking magic trick," he spat.
"Whatever you bastard. Why are you calling me and wasting my time?" Naruto demanded.
"Sakura broke a laptop over my head," he stated plainly. There was a pause. After a few seconds Naruto erupted into an obnoxious fit of laughter.
"Oh my god, I have never wished I had done better in high school so badly in my life! I would've killed to see that happen! Looks like I've taught her well!" He bellowed. Sasuke scowled.
"That's not the point, idiot, she came in after she'd clearly been crying. I asked her what I had done to piss her off this time, and she attacked me, then ran out bawling. Kiba said something about it being because of some Sai guy?" He explained more in depth, still in his usual monotone. This caused Naruto to stop cackling.
"Oh hell… it was their would be anniversary this week. I just didn't think he'd actually be coming back…" He drawled.
"What? Anniversary?" Sasuke echoed, "is Sakura married?!"
"No, idiot," it was Naruto's turn to insult his intelligence, "it was their one year anniversary of seriously dating. Sakura doesn't believe in marriage." Sasuke wanted to ask what he meant by she didn't believe in marriage but that was a conversation for another day.
"So what's the problem then? That's a good thing right?" He ascertained.
"Not exactly… their relationship was weird and Sai was an ass. He was really good at putting her down," Naruto sighed, "He was in Europe for a while. I guess he came back and things went bad. I don't know, if she was crying it was probably terrible. I'll have to go see her."
"Alright, I'll meet you then," Sasuke agreed.
"Uh, no, you won't. Wait, why?" Naruto asked with bewilderment.
"Because she broke a fucking lap top over my head. Excuse me for wanting to know why," Sasuke fumed, his eyebrows furrowed.
"Tch, selfish reasons as always. Should've known. But fine, meet me at the corner of West 21st and 9th." He instructed while hanging up immediately after. Sasuke was entirely aggitated by Naruto's lack of conversational etiquette, but there was nothing he could do about it. That's just how he was and always would be. Stashing his phone back in its place the raven haired nineteen year old made his way to the train station several blocks down; the same place Sakura emerged out of every afternoon.
It took mere minutes to get to the proper stop, Sasuke slightly surprised that she lived so close to the campus. Albeit it did make a good deal of sense. Lumbering out of the station he surfaced into a middle class neighborhood consisting mostly of apartment buildings. He was on West 21st and 7th, meaning he had two blocks to go until his meeting place. Easy enough.
"It's about damn time, I almost left your sorry ass," Naruto declared as soon as Sasuke was within sight.
"No you didn't," he rolled his eyes.
"Whatever, I hope you're ready for this. You're probably going to get your ass handed to you again," the blonde warned with a smirk. Sasuke ignored him knowing that the scenario was highly unlikely.
Sakura's apartment building was one of the taller, newer looking ones with a dark grey finish on the outside. The doorman let them in upon recognizing Naruto, even making quick small talk as they passed through. Heading into the hallway behind the main lobby the two college students took the elevator six floors up. After standing for a few seconds with awkwardly terrible elevator music, a high pitched 'ding' announced them at their destination. Naruto plodded only a few doors down before stopping and knocking obnoxiously. The door where his hand met read '6f' in metallic letters.
"Go away!" Sakura's voice called from inside the apartment.
"Come on Sakura, I just wanna know if you're okay," Naruto explained as he feigned an abnormal politeness.
"I'm fine, like always. And I don't talk to two faced people! So go away!" Her muffled voice shouted back. Sasuke smirked.
"Let me try," he proclaimed, pushing Naruto out of the way. He knocked lightly.
"I said go away Naruto!" Sakura repeated angrily.
"It's not Naruto, Sakura," Sasuke announced. She snorted at his declaration.
"If you think that's going to make a difference then you two are even dafter than I thought," she responded darkly. Sasuke's smirk fell, eyebrows knitted. Naruto was smiling but kept his comments to himself for a change.
"Sakura, seriously, I wanna know why you gave Sasuke a head injury. And praise you for it. Please just let us in," he tried for the last time genuinely. There was a moment of silence. The lock on the door clicked as Naruto sighed wth relief.
"Fine, get your pathetic asses in here before you piss of my neighbors with all the racket you're making," she ordered, barely opening the door with enough space for them to squeeze in; clearly intentional. Sasuke's nostrils were invaded by smells he wasn't at all accustomed to, causing his eyes to widen as he analyzed and adjusted to them. A mix of vanilla, strawberries, and a subtle hint of laundry detergent with a side of bleach. Sakura's apartment was relatively clean, minus her shoes scattered by the door and several outfits lying on the back of a leather couch. A few makeup brushes sat oddly on a towel by the sink. The walls were a popular shade of beige, a small flat screen sitting in the corner of the living room on a fake wooden stand. A number of framed pictures decorated throughout the walls. One of Aubrey Hepburn, another of the New York City skyline and one in the kitchen of the 18 year old dressed in green scrubs with a group of roughly 20 kids. It was roomy but it was easy to tell she didn't spend a hefty amount of time there.
"For the record, I'm not apologizing," Sakura interrupted Sasuke's train of thought, bringing him back to their current ordeal. "You had it, no, you've had it coming." She concluded, her face rid of emotion yet stained by makeup and dried up tears.
"I wasn't going to ask you to," he responded, hands in his pockets while appearing intentionally more bored than he actually was.
"So what did that pale asshole do to you this time?" Naruto asked getting right to the point. She sighed, her look of sadness returning.
"We can talk in my room. Sasuke, you can sit out here. I have cable so you can watch baseball or something," she announced.
"Hn," He mumbled, moving her clothes and sitting stoically on the couch. Flicking on the television he scrolled through the channels.
Sakura ushered Naruto to her room, closing and locking her white painted door behind them. What she forgot, however, was that wood wasn't in fact sound proof and there was a rather large gap between the bottom part of her door and the laminent.
"So do you want to know why I hit Sasuke first or..?" She started asking Naruto.
"Just start from the beginning, I'm sure they're all related," the blonde affirmed. It was muffled, but Sasuke managed to hear bits and pieces of their conversation depending on how loud they were. A good 30 seconds or so he couldn't make out anything until,
"…Then that prick had the nerve, after leaving me countless times, to claim me as his girlfriend! Like, seriously?" Sakura exclaimed.
"Yeah, that's screwed up considering he was in a different part of the world seeing other people…" Naruto droned. Boys naturally sucked with giving girls advice, but he was really trying.
"Exactly! Then he went on to…" she paused for a second. "No, you don't need to know anymore."
"Yes I do, Sakura, this is clearly the part when he got to you," Naruto insisted. She suspired deeply as she blinked.
"He just… you know he knows me pretty well, Naruto. Like he knows my insecurities. We've been on and off for two years then pretty steady for almost one. And he used it against me…" She began speaking lowly, barely loud enough for Sasuke to hear. "He kept… I was jealous… like with Ino… then he… everyone leaves me because I have no redeeming traits or talent… that I'm no good… why I didn't get into pre-med… because I'm mediocre." She went lamented, Sasuke only being able to catch bits and pieces. Ultimately it was more than enough for him to get the big picture. Moral of the story: this guy was a tool. And because he was a tool, Sasuke now had a head wound and Sakura was out of a laptop. Fucker. Naruto proceeded to offer Sakura comforting words and advice, calming her down although she was still very clearly bothered by it. A rough twenty minutes later and they finally walked back into the living room.
They studied him as he pretended to be engrossed in a baseball game.
"Well, you guys can stay here I guess…" Sakura drawled unsurely, "but I have to go to Neural Science so." She sauntered over to the kitchen sink, wetting a towel and cleaning her face of smeared make up. She appeared a lot younger without it, especially with her porcelain like skin and round emerald eyes. She grabbed her bag and searched for her keys and metro card to leave. A sudden urgle boiled within Sasuke. He didn't want her to apologize by any means, yet at the same time he deserved to give her hell for being a raging psycho. He would be the one to get the last word in, justifiably angry that she had assaulted him in the middle of clase. He stared at her, hands in his pockets with a smirk plastered on his face. Signature Sasuke.
"Sorry to break it to you Sakura, but I doubt any hospital's going to," he pasued for a second, growing slightly light headed. He must've just stood up too quick. Sakura eyed him, pink brows raised waiting for his punch line. "I doubt any hospital's going to want a nurse," he stammered, a black fuzz clouding his vision, his hands growing cold. What was happening? "Is going to… want a nurse that goes around giving people brain injuries." Sasuke finished finally, words slurred as his posture wavered. Both Naruto and Sakura gazed at him strangely.
"Uh, Sasuke, are you okay?" Naruto spoke, reading Sakura's thoughts. Ignoring the question, Sasuke smiled. In that moment the nursing student knew something had to be wrong; Sasuke Uchiha never smiled.
"I mean, that's pretty screwed up if you ask me," he laughed, pointing an accusing finger, but his elbow slouched immediately, causing his hand to fall right back to his side. More black fuzz; his legs now felt like jelly. It took only a split second for Sasuke to plow face first into the wooden floor of Sakura's living room.
"Oh holy hell Sakura! His brain hemorrhaged! You killed him!" Naruto whaled, jumping on her couch cushions as if there was a mouse running around. Sakura ignored his blatantly stupid comment, kneeling down to check his pulse. She sighed at the circumstances of the situation.
"No, he probably just has a concussion," She replied, wiping a bead of sweat from her forehead, "help me get him on the couch."
After a good amount of effort, the two finally succeeded in getting the knocked out cold Uchiha onto Sakura's leather love seat. She ordered Naruto around as she bandaged his head.
"Get me the bottle of disinfectant from the bathroom,"
"Grab me the box of gauze from under the sink,"
"I need a cold, wet wash cloth with a few ice cubes wrapped in it,"
"Get the circular neck pillow from my bedroom,"
An hour later, Sasuke finally opened his eyes. Naruto gasped loudly, straight out of some ridiculous melodrama.
"He lives!" Sakura rolled her eyes.
"Of course he does you dimwit."
"What the hell happened..?" He asked quietly, still feeling insanely dizzy. Sakura offered him a thin smile.
"You have a concussion and, after making a terrible joke, you took a nose dive in my living room," she explained, evidently finding it completely hilarious. Damn her.
"Is that why my forehead is screaming now too?" He prodded, putting his hand on the wet wash cloth that laid there. She nodded,
"Yup, in all honesty, you're pretty lucky you didn't break your face," she chuckled lightly. He sighed. Really, she was right.
Naruto pressed on to avidly taunt Sasuke for making himself look like a douche. Not even a moment later a knock at the door caught all of their attention. Sakura looked at both of them for an explanation.
"I don't know who it is, don't look at me," Naruto said, hands up defensively. She eyed Sasuke who simply shrugged. Hesitantly she cracked open the door.
"Oh, u-um, hi, Mr. Uchiha," Sakura stammered out, her voice trembling. Sasuke jumped to his feet immediately. For having a concussion he was behind her inhumanly fast.
"Why are you here?" He growled, all the while still holding the wash cloth to his forehead.
"Ah, so you are here," Itachi smirked from the doorway. Sasuke glared in response, awaiting an answer. "I got back from New York thinking I'd come home to see my little brother. But no, you weren't there."
"People go out and do things all the time, Itachi. It's a normal thing," Sasuke bit back.
"Yeah, but you don't have any friends, so I got worried," Itachi mocked slyly, Sasuke's glare intensifying.
"I can take care of myself, thank you very much." He quipped.
"Yeah, is that why your forehead's bruised and your head's in bandages?" Itachi asked sheepishly, meriting no response, "well, as long as I know now that you're not dead in a ditch somewhere, I'll be leaving. It was nice seeing you, little Sakura." And he made stepped away, padding down the hallway towards the elevator. Sakura slowly closed the door, eyes wide with shock.
"How the hell did he find where I live?" She asked under her breath.
"We have friends in low places," Sasuke repeated the very phrase he had said to Naruto just shy of a week ago. He slowly moved back to the couch. Sakura followed behind, sitting next to him and subconsciously placing an ice pack to the back of his head.
"So what was that all about, exactly? You and Itachi always got along so well when we were younger…" Naruto pondered aloud.
"Yeah, but after the accident he assumed Dad's position in the company, so he's all about work now. He tries to treat me like his child when I see him at the flat maybe eight times a year. He has no right to have any say in my life and it pisses me off when he tries to act like that's his place," Sasuke ranted. Naruto gazed at him wildely. Rarely did he ever speak about his personal life, mainly after his parents passed away four years ago. "S-Sorry, my heads jumbled, I shouldn't have said any of that." He added quickly, wiping the cloth across his forehead and sighing. He noticed the pink hue of Sakura's hair in his peripheral vision, just then realizing she was at his side applying ice to his injury. She had been doing a few minutes. Their eyes met for a brief second, causing them both to look away while Sakura's cheeks heated up. Naruto broke out laughing.
"What're you laughing at, dumb ass?" Sasuke barked, clearly embarrassed. The blonde wiped a tear from his eye, grinning ear to ear.
"Oh nothing, I just could've sworn we were back in 7th grade. Watching you guys, it's exactly how it was back then."
A/N: So for those of you who get my foreshadowing reference… yes, I am the cheese master. Hahaha it was a terrible pun I know. Anyway, there's chapter two. I will respond to all of you lovelies who review! I appreciate it so greatly! This was another character development chapter, but you get to see more into the type of people they are. Like their personal relationships outside of their friendship. Oh and for the record, I do not hate Sai! At all! I just despise making of OC's, and judging how mean he is to Ino, I can totally see him being that mean to Sakura if she challenged him in anyway, which is what happened. So thus he became her mean, sorta ex boyfriend. Sorry, the reality is she was not going to wait for Sasuke, especially after four years of not even a letter or text message. Anyway, I have the main ideas for the rest of this story written out, so hopefully updates will be relatively quick but I am making no promises. Please review, & constructive criticism is greatly appreciated. They encourage me to write more if I know people are actually reading & enjoying it. Alright, thanks everyone!
