Sleepless

"I can't believe you haven't done it! It's been almost a year! Sasuke I knew you were cold, but that is just plain weird!" Naruto threw basic hysterics, waking his son again.

Sakura's smiled faltered and her cheeks burned. Sasuke was up and on the offensive, though why he was so fervent about something like this, no one in the room could understand.

"What are you saying, idiot?" Sasuke hissed through clenched teeth.

"It wasn't hard to guess from the looks on your faces," Naruto waved his hand dismissively. "Why haven't you done it anyway? What is there something wrong with you?"

"You moron, I'll kill you!" Sasuke, unable to grab him by the shirt, grabbed Naruto's bare arm and hauled him up to eye level.

"Sasuke! Sit. Down." Sakura ground out. "You're overreacting. Boys," she said to Hinata with apologetic laughter, handing over her crying child. Sasuke, unable to completely let go of the insult to his masculine pride, released Naruto's arm, but remained standing. "I'm sorry, Naruto. You have to understand, he came here looking for a fight. As far as that goes, the marriage happened in a huge rush and we're still getting acclimated to one another." She knew all this wasn't entirely true, but she didn't know how to explain the state of their relationship, that they didn't have much of an idea how they felt about each other. They hadn't had the time to figure that out.

"When you agreed to marry him, you didn't say that you would need all this time to get acclimated," Naruto murmured.

"Well you didn't mention that you would start sending me awkward half messages if I failed to get pregnant right off the bat," she retorted.

Sasuke spoke up. "Naruto, when you proposed that I get married, you said it was for the people of Konoha, so they would accept that my loyalty was here, but you never said that I'd have to pass on my blood for the 'prosperity of the village'."

Naruto squirmed. "Well honestly, when you told me you wanted to marry Sakura because she 'wouldn't bother you' I didn't have much hope. But after all this time, you hadn't killed each other, and the other clans started pressuring me about why she hadn't already given birth…"

"Have they forgotten that the Sharingan is dangerous?" Sasuke seethed. "That it was because of the Sharingan that my clan was destroyed in the first place? And now they want me to build a new clan for them to tear down?" Sasuke's eyes flared as though he might active it right there, but they remained their usual black.

"Sasuke," Sakura began.

"It should be my decision if I want to bring a child into this world," he ground out, after a pause he amended his statement. "Our decision. It's not the place of the Aburames, or the Akimichis or least of all your father-in-law to determine when or if I create a family with my wife." Sakura's ears perked up at the phrase.

"I understand," Naruto said. "No one's forcing you. Let's forget about the heir business for now. Out of curiosity, how do you manage to live together for all those months and not… I mean…" Naruto glanced at Hinata, making her blush.

"Our relationship is more intellectual at this stage," Sakura said with a small laugh. Intellectual was the right word for it. Intellectual cat and mouse. She would provoke him, he would retreat into his shell, she would keep at it, and the cycle began again. There wasn't much time for love making in the midst of just trying to figure out if they were allowed to enjoy the result their hasty nuptials. In fact, the kiss today was the first indicator of any kind of physical relationship since before their marriage was arranged.

"Do you love each other?" Naruto asked. "Do you even like each other?"

Sasuke crossed his arms, refusing to answer. "Of course we do," Sakura responded slowly and unconvincingly. "On good days." He glared at her, clearly conveying that he was uncofortable with the idiot's prying into their business.

"Okay," Naruto said dubiously. "Well I hope you two learn to… get along. But for now, maybe it's best you head home."

"Come on Sakura," Sasuke said quickly.

As Sakura rose to follow Sasuke, Hinata, who hadn't said much either way on the subject, smiled knowingly and caught her by the arm. With a conspiratorial tone, she whispered to her, "Hang in there Sakura. If it's possible to get through Naruto's skull, it's possible to get through Sasuke's shell."

Strangely comforted by this, Sakura smiled back. "Thank you, Hinata."

Lying in bed that night was an especially estranged experience. They both stayed rigidly on their side, and Sasuke kicked all the blankets off himself to her, complaining about being overheated, though she knew he was always ice cold. Sakura lay there awake for hours, though she had work at the hospital in the morning, thinking about their wedding.

It was the middle of March, in the miserable part of winter when everyone was just hoping for it to end. Naruto called Sakura out of work to his office. When she arrived she was surprised to see Sasuke sitting beside him.

She hadn't seen him often since his return to the village from his journey for repentance. When he came to the hospital for training injuries, sometimes he lingered until she left work to walk with her home. All their interactions were brief and polite but uncomfortable, like they were forcing themselves to pick up where they had left off. There was an unacknowledged and gruesome history between them now— betrayal, abandonment, attempts on their lives from both sides, years of anger and regret. Neither of them held any grudges, but the warmth between when he promised her a next time had dried up while he was away. And they realized they were now strangers, trying to be lovers.

"Sakura I have a favor to ask you." It was still strange then to hear Naruto being professional. Even in his Hokage's robes, he was still the same rude little boy to her.

"What is it?"

"You know that Sasuke's been training in secret for a long time now, to enter the ANBU," he said.

"Yes." She nodded. What did she have to do with his training? Aside from confidentially healing occasional wounds per Naruto's request, so the nature of it could remain unknown, she had no part in it. And he didn't seem to be wounded.

"Well, I was perfectly ready to admit him. I have been for a while, but it seems it's not up to me, solely. Not this time anyway."

"I don't understand what I have to do with this," she said.

Naruto sighed. "We've experience some concern from certain members of the ANBU. They insist that it's a bad idea to enlist Sasuke into the division, because of his… history with the village. I told them they were dead wrong of course, but they won't let it go. They claim that Sasuke has no reason to remain faithful to Konoha, seeing as he has no family, or social life, or-"

"Get to the point," Sasuke grumbled.

"Wife," Naruto finished.

"I'm sorry?" Sakura looked confused.

"I can't put Sasuke on a team where his teammates feel as though they can't trust him. I can't get around it. In order for Sasuke to join the ANBU he has to get married, which he has agreed to do, on one condition."

"And what's that?" she asked, positive she didn't want to know.

"That he marry you," Naruto said.

Sakura didn't know what to say to that. This could not be happening. Uchiha Sasuke wanted to marry her. It was to get into the ANBU, but it could have been anyone, and he chose her. Only one question came to mind.

"Why?" Sasuke said nothing.

"I told him it could be any girl who would have him," Naruto replied for him. "I gave him time to think about it. Weeks. And he came back demanding you. I asked why, and he said that he 'didn't entirely dislike you.' And that he couldn't say the same for any other girl in the village."

"Sasuke," she said, sounding touched. "I don't entirely dislike you either."

"So you'll do it?" Naruto seemed relieved.

Sakura thought about all his attempts to do right by her. Awkward, but persistent. It wasnt as though she had helped much in getting reaccquainted, hung up sorting her own ancient feelings. Maybe this was a step in the right direction for them. It was obvious they both wanted to be together. It was certainly possible that if they acted like lovers, they would start to feel like lovers with time.

She took a deep breath to ground herself. "I will. But I have a condition too."

Naruto looked as though he had had enough of stubborn ninjas' conditions. "What is it?" he moaned.

"Sasuke has to ask me."

Sasuke scowled. Naruto narrowed his eyes at him. "You heard her, bastard. You already have your answer. All you have to do is ask."

His eyes swam with emotions from fear to embarrasment. "Sakura," he began.

"Stand up," she commanded, act like lovers.

Sasuke raised to his feet and took one step toward her. "Sakura," he tried again.

"Excuse me, what's my name?" she prompted him.

He sighed, trying to get this mess of a proposal over with. "Haruno Sakura," he paused to see if she would interrupt him again. She just smiled approvingly. "Would you… please, be my wife?"

Her green eyes gleamed. "Yes Uchiha Sasuke, I will."

The ceremony itself took place barely two weeks later. It was very intimate. The only ones in attendance were Sakura's family, Kakashi, Tsunade, and Hinata. Naruto officiated. Sakura wore the same elegant white kimono Hinata had worn at her wedding. It was now early April and the cherry trees were in full bloom. Sakura could not stop silently wondering at how perfectly that bit had worked out. At a small outdoor Shinto shrine, with pink petals glittering down around them and their few guests, they said their vows and were wed. Nothing prepared, nothing fantastic, just the tiny April wedding that twelve-year-old Sakura had always dreamed of.

They chose not to have a reception afterward, since Sasuke found celebration tiresome, and Sakura found it out of place. This was not the kind of wedding you celebrated, not if you knew why it was happening. After the proceedings they went home, back to the Uchiha compound, and slept.

It was strange for Sakura to get used to living in the estate. The red and white Uchiha insignia was emblazoned on doors and walls and silverware, and it even hung on an ornate banner above their bed. It was on most of Sasuke's clothes and before long, it began to find its way onto hers as well. A constant reminder of the former glory that once resided there, before it was reduced to just one man. This whole compound, which once housed an entire clan, now belonged to just the two of them, though they stayed only in the main house. It was foreboding, and lonesome to have so much room. For the first few months, when Sakura wasn't working, in or out of the house, she would sit by the big window and watch the cherry trees that grew beside the high rock walls of the estate. She did that all summer, especially so when Sasuke was away on ANBU missions without her, even though after a week or so the blossoms had passed and the trees seemed tired and hopeless.

A/N: probably my favorite chapter so far. they might be closer to a happy ending than Sakura thinks...