Chapter 2

One of the many things Gaara had learned about Sakura was that she liked to fuss over him, even when it wasn't entirely necessary. He had told her that he was more than capable of looking after himself, but she would have none of it. Every day, during her lunch break, Sakura would come to his office with food so that they could both eat together. She had once told him that if she didn't bring him food and made sure that he ate it, then her husband would surely die of starvation. Gaara couldn't complain really. It was nice to have somebody fussing over him, to have them checking up on him not out of duty, but out of love.

Now that she was a kunoichi belonging to his village, not to mention his wife, Sakura was head medic at the hospital as well as one of his most trusted advisers. However, she rarely (never) left the village to go on missions or act as a delegate (the council had decided that Temari was best suited for that job). Sakura had screamed and yelled and completely obliterated the training grounds when she heard the news, of course, but she didn't, for a second, take her anger out on Gaara. She had been there during the meeting, had heard him arguing with the council, demanding them to allow Sakura to go on missions, but no matter how hard he fought they still refused, saying that they couldn't risk anything happening to the Kazekage's wife.

And in the end, after hearing their reasoning, Gaara had agreed with only the smallest amount of reluctance. He didn't want anything to happen to his wife, either.

At that moment in time, Gaara was sat at his desk, back ramrod straight, eyes glued onto the messenger in front of him, effectively making the jonin uneasy. He was from Konoha, somebody that not only Sakura knew quite well, but also his sister.

Nara Shikamaru.

He had been courting her much longer than Gaara had courted Sakura. In fact, even though he hadn't been aware of their relationship, Gaara had known that he was the reason why Temari enjoyed going to Konoha so much. Well, him and the fact that they apparently served the best tasting dango she had ever had.

Gaara had to hold back a sigh. He had thought the Nara had come to Suna, to him, to finally ask him for his sister's hand in marriage. It wasn't that he had to, but everyone knew how protective the Kazekage was of those he cared for.

He wasn't the only one, either. Kankuro had actually threatened Shikamaru when they had learned about his relationship with their sister, warning the Nara that he better look after her otherwise he'd use him as his newest puppet. The thing that had freaked Shikamaru out the most was that Kankuro could really do that thanks to Sasori's sick experiments and obsession with turning people into puppets. Gaara hadn't needed to say much. All it took to get his point across was a rather murderous glare (though nowhere near as terrifying as it used to be since he didn't want to completely scare him off) and his sand moving around restlessly in his gourd. It had amused him greatly when Shikamaru had gulped and took a half-step back while still trying to keep up his lazy act of indifference.

"I can tell her if you want," Shikamaru told the Kazekage, his brows furrowing since he knew how serious something like this would be to Sakura. "It'll be troublesome, but I know her well enough to–"

"No. I will be the one to tell her."

Gaara sighed as he looked out of his window, which, coincidentally enough, gave him a decent enough view of the hospital. It wasn't that it was close, because it wasn't, it was just that the hospital was large enough to be seen over the other buildings. Gaara could only see the top half of it but that was enough for him since his wife's office was on the top floor.

What he had to tell Sakura was not going to be easy. It wasn't that Gaara didn't trust her or that he questioned her loyalty to him, it was just that he knew how much this certain thing meant to her. He said thing and not person because Uchiha Sasuke was not somebody that deserved to be seen as a person. Not in Gaara's eyes. Even he had tried to make the Uchiha see that his world didn't have to be all about darkness, but Sasuke had already shut out the light. He had betrayed his village, his friends, his teammates. But worst of all, Sasuke had betrayed the people, the only people, who had truly loved him.

He still couldn't understand what kind of person would turn their back on those who cared for him, which was why Gaara didn't see Sasuke as a person. They had been together for two years now and he had seen so many different sides to Sakura, a few of those sides that only he could see and they were all wonderful, all amazing. It made his chest ache knowing that somebody as innocent and as loving as Sakura had been betrayed.

She often had nightmares. Some of them were memories of the night she had been left unconscious on a bench (her first failure at saving Sasuke), some of them were of trying to find him (more failures) and others were of the times he had tried to kill her. That had to be what made Gaara's blood boil the most, the fact that Sakura was still being tormented by the Uchiha even as she slept.

He closed his eyes, exhaling slowly and seeming to forget all about Shikamaru, who could also feel the weight of what they had learned on his shoulders. If he didn't tell Sakura, she would eventually find out and would be pissed off with him. Gaara wouldn't keep it from her, though. She deserved to know the truth, to know what was happening.

"Will you be waiting in Suna for Sakura's response?"

Shikamaru looked up at the Kazekage just in time to see the redhead opening his eyes, staring at him with his usual intense, impassive gaze. It wasn't that he meant to be intimidating, Shikamaru knew that. It was the look in his eyes, a look that told him of the many horrors the man had seen and gone through. It was a look that Naruto got in his eyes when he was feeling down. In a way, Shikamaru was glad that Gaara and Naruto formed a bond on that pain, that they had a strong friendship that couldn't be destroyed. It only proved how much Naruto trusted Gaara since he had allowed the Kazekage to marry his best friend. Previously, whenever somebody had asked Sakura on a date, Naruto would flip and act like a protective older brother (even though he was younger than her).

"I will," Shikamaru replied. "Tsunade-sama ordered me to stay in case Sakura wants to return to Konoha for a few weeks, so that she won't be travelling alone."

"Very well." He liked that plan. Even though only one jonin wouldn't be able to fight off Uchiha Sasuke, it was still better than her being alone. "Though if she really wants to go back to Konoha, I will escort her myself."

The Nara's eyes widened. "Kazekage-sama, you have to stay here in your village. I promise that I will protect h–"

"If it was Temari, would you allow for somebody other than yourself to protect her against somebody like Uchiha?"

"…I wouldn't."

"You can stay in Suna for as long as your Hokage allows," Gaara informed him as he pulled himself to his feet and walked over to the wall that his gourd was leaning against. "Temari is currently teaching at the Academy." She had lost a bet with Kankuro and because of that, she now had to teach there for a whole month.

He didn't give Shikamaru a chance to reply as he suddenly used his sand to transport himself to the hospital.

She was freaking out.

Sakura was freaking the fuck out.

Now, she usually wasn't one for swearing (unless she was really pissed off), but right now, Sakura was certain that she should be allowed a pass since her day was just full of surprises – and it wasn't even noon yet. What the hell was she going to do? What the hell was she going to tell Gaara? She could already sense his chakra heading towards her, could feel him moving through the hospital and up to her office. Transportation jutsu was not supposed to be used inside of the hospital, not unless it was for emergencies or ANBU. It got people worked up, thinking that there was something serious going on, that lives were in danger.

At the moment, she was torn between bouncing of the walls and giggling with excitement, or curling up into a ball in the corner of her office, rocking back and forth while crying hysterically. So far, Sakura was more on the 'giggling with excitement' side than the crying. She couldn't sit still.

A knock on her door brought her out of her thoughts and just as it opened, she was on her feet, yanking the door open fully and dragging Gaara in by his hand, ignoring his look of shock as she slammed the door shut again. She had used a little more force than necessary, making the walls rattle, but at least that way the other medics wouldn't bother her. No, right now, she and Gaara needed some privacy.

"Sakura, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." She grinned, letting go of Gaara and stepping back to give him some room. However, as she did, she caught the look in his eyes, the one that was just screaming at her that he had bad news. "What's wrong?"

He sighed, his eyes lowering to the ground as he tried to think of a way to tell Sakura. "I have some news on–"

"Wait," Sakura exclaimed happily with one of the largest smiles he had ever seen on her face as she grasped his arm, pulling him further into her office so that he could sit down. She was the only person who could get away with handling him in such a way. "I need to tell you something first. That way, whatever bad news you're about to give me won't be as bad."

Gaara almost hated himself knowing that he would be the one to wipe that smile right off her face. "What is it?"

"Okay, I know we've never really spoken about it," she started slowly, giving him a nervous chuckle as she scratched the back of her head. "Just try to be… I don't know. Just don't get mad, okay?"

"Why would I be angry with you?"

Her smile dimmed ever so slightly as Sakura grew more nervous, as she sat down beside him on the sofa and took his hand gently, holding it between the both of hers. "Remember this morning? When I asked you if I've put on some weight?" Gaara tensed a little, remembering her reaction when he had told her that yes, she had put weight on. How was he supposed to know that that was the wrong answer? Lucky for him, his sand had automatically come to his defence and took the brunt of her monstrous strength. "Well, after I got to work, I heard the latest gossip." She paused for a second, giving him a serious look. "The village thinks I'm pregnant, Gaara."

This time, the way he tensed was a hell of a lot more noticeable.

"I can't know for sure how far along I am," she told him quietly, her eyes lowering to their hands, "but the gossip is true. I am pregnant." Looking up at him again, Sakura bit her lip. "I was wondering if we could go to Konoha, to Tsunade-shishou. By the looks of things, I'm guessing that I could be nearing the end of my first trimester, but only a highly skilled medic with a lot of experience can find out for me. And, don't take this the wrong way, because I do trust the medics here and the machines and whatnot, but… I just… I want Tsunade-sama to be the one to tell me. She's like a mother to me…"

Noticing that she was rambling and Gaara was most likely in shock, Sakura fell silent, continuing to stare at their hands like they were the most interesting things on the planet. "We've never really spoken about having children and up until now, I can honestly say that I wasn't sure if I even wanted any. But… But just the thought of having a baby, something that we have created out of love, growing inside of me…" Her smile was dreamy as she looked up into his eyes, feeling slightly better that he was looking at her now. "I don't know about you, but I wouldn't mind having your children."

The blush on her cheeks and the loving look in her eyes made her seem even more beautiful than she already was, Gaara thought as he lifted his free hand and brushed some of her pastel pink hair behind her ear. It was an appealing thought, having Sakura bearing his children, having his own little family with her. However, would he be able to be a father? It was no secret that his own childhood had not been a happy one (understatement of the century) and Gaara didn't want anybody to suffer the way he had, especially his own child. What if he did something wrong? What if he hurt the child? He would never forgive himself. Sakura would never forgive him.

"I think you'll be a great father," Sakura whispered, stroking his hand softly with her thumb. "It's because you know of suffering that you'd do anything to protect our child, to save them from feeling the same pain."

It was like she could read his mind. Gaara honestly didn't know what to say.

"If it helps any," her voice went even quieter, to a barely even audible whisper, "I'm scared, too. But together we can protect our child. And when he's old enough, we can teach him everything we know so that way, he'll be able to protect himself, too."

"…He?"

Sakura's blush grew. "I'm only guessing, but I'd like to think it's a boy. That way if we ever have more children, the next could be a girl. She'd have a big brother who will beat up anybody who picks on her." She suddenly smiled slyly. "Not to mention her father would be the Kazekage."

For some reason, Gaara found the thought of having a daughter more appealing than having a son, though he wasn't sure why. If they had a son, he would be able to… To what? What did a father do with his child? Those were the sort of things that had Gaara worried. He had no idea how a parent acted around their child. His mother had died giving birth to him and his father had left him alone throughout his childhood, had sent assassins after his own son. Gaara would never do that to his child. He would never let anybody hurt them. He'd rather die than leave them alone.

Slowly, hesitantly, Gaara's free hand trailed down from her cheek, down her arm until it was near her stomach. Then, as his palm pressed against her small, barely rounded stomach, Sakura smiled softly, enjoying the look of awe in his eyes. In some ways, he was so innocent. He looked almost child-like as he pulled his other hand free and reached for her stomach, a small smile pulling at the corners of his mouth. It wasn't too obvious, but there was a small bump.

"Our child," he murmured, his eyes warm with the smile he saved only for Sakura. "…I like the sound of that."