Going Waysides
2: Chocolate
A small crunch echoed across the room, reaching a pair of pointy ears, each twitching to the tune of the following sounds of munch, munch, munch. A pair of emerald eyes watched, hypnotized, with bated breath, as nimble fingers appeared from behind an orange book, reaching towards a box of brown, sticky squares. Taking one, the fingers, lightly coated with the brown substance, quickly disappeared behind the book.
The box lay there open, tantalizingly, its contents' delicious smell wafting, beckoning, to the furry creature's sensitive nose and the fox all but stopped herself from pouncing on it.
Sakura unconsciously licked her lips.
This could be an opportunity to try and see Kakashi's face, but… but… but…
… the chocolate, damn it!
Sakura can safely say that she loves Kakashi, both Kakashis - the old one was a father-figure while this one was something akin to a brother. She loved him even as he put Naruto and Sasuke's training before her. He was her sensei, her teammate, her initial guidance out in the field, and she trusts him completely.
She can tolerate his quirks, his annoying, odd sense of humor, sometimes his penchant for porn and, begrudgingly, his chronic tardiness.
Heck, she even tolerated it when he was having hot, heavy sex while she was out in the cold, wet rain!
But this… this was beyond evil! This is pure torture!
Kakashi shifted a bit in his futon, perversely giggling about someone named Junko. Sakura glared holes at the offending book, but it quickly dissipated when the air breezed in from the open window, circulating the chocolate's scent around the room.
Sakura closed her eyes, imagining a bite of the chocolate going down her throat, and took a deep breath, taking in as much of the dessert's scent in. It could be called masochistic, but she'll take what she can get.
Chocolate was not her favorite food. Yes, she enjoyed it every now and then, but she never indulged in it when depressed or overjoyed. Sometimes she would take one if her friends gave her some, but she didn't go out of her way to seek for it.
But now, faced with the prospect of not being able to eat one just because of what she is, well, it was just damn depressing.
Chocolate was more than food for her. It was comfort. It was for before. Her memories of them.
It stands for the past, in the carefree days, when she would buy blocks of cocoa, trying her best, the night before Valentine's Day, to make the best chocolate for Sasuke-kun, tasting only meager bits because she didn't want to ruin her diet. Upon rejection, Naruto would ask if he can have it, and she would immediately throw it on his face to shut him up.
It reminds her for the days when Lee would come, his megawatt smile brightening her day after a dull shift in the hospital, asking for a date, presenting a bouquet of flowers and a box of the heart-shaped desserts. She would decline the date politely, and when Lee leaves, spouting about how he will win her heart with his youth, she would pass around the box to her co-workers, getting grateful smiles and chuckles about the daily occurrence.
It was there when Ino would barge through her apartment, instantly ending her depressing bouts about Team Seven. Her best friend would declare it an impromptu girls' night out, and that she has no choice but to accept it, then starts raving about the latest gossip, chatting about how boys are stupid and how the latest fashion trends will make Sakura's forehead look smaller, munching chocolate as little as possible, while pushing the rest to Forehead-girl so that she'll get fatter than she already is and then Sakura would subsequently retort that Ino-pig would then be able to hog all the men. They would laugh, wash their hands, and then paint each other's nails.
It would find her in random parts of the day, Naruto disturbing her and cheekily asking her if she left it at his door for him, his hand holding a box neatly wrapped, a card on top - obviously written with a feminine hand - filled with an encouraging note for Naruto to keep on pursuing his dream of being a Hokage. Sakura would always expand her senses to sense his admirer, and sure enough, she would be there, hiding somewhere close in the surroundings. Sakura would then encourage Naruto to do what the letter said, but affirm that no, she wasn't the one who gave it to him. Naruto would nevertheless offer her one, and an air of depression would immediately emanate from a corner, all because the idiot would rather let his teammate get the first taste. Sakura, fighting the urge to face palm, would decline and motivate Naruto to look for his admirer, usually by punching him towards Hinata's hiding place.
In other words, she took chocolate for granted, and now, it saw fit to punish her.
You never know what you've got until it's gone, Sakura thought morosely.
"Is there something wrong, Sakura?", Kakashi suddenly asked. A lone eye peeked behind his precious Icha Icha. "You've been staring at me for the last fifteen minutes."
A bit peeved that she was caught, Sakura looked away. "Nothing."
Kakashi raised a brow at her despondent voice. She looked at him and fixed her fox-face into something that hopefully resembles a reassuring grin.
"Nothing at all."
Author's Notes/Ramblings:
~ This prompt appeared when I was having my desserts. I immediately asked Taiko-chan if fox!Sakura can eat the food, and, well, the misery of not being able to eat those delectable, fattening snacks got to me. The horror! This was supposed to be funny or something, but the Chocolate demanded to be paid proper condolences. Bow, you fools!
~ Since WHEN did Kakashi have that Icha Icha book anyway?
~ I went with Going Waysides because 'wayside' means 'the edge of a road'. Since this is just a side fic, I think it fits perfectly.
~ This fic, unlike Going Sideways, will not be in chronological order. The time and event will vary from chapter to chapter. The timeframe established is somewhat… flexible, so don't expect me to tell you when the event exactly took place.
Thank you for your faves and comments. They fuel me with more passion to continue!
~ Lost-chan