Part Four

Sasuke opened the door to Itachi's apartment a week later, setting the groceries onto the counter and calling out a greeting to Mei as he entered. As he began unpacking the things he had bought, a slow sense of unease washed over him.

The apartment was quiet. Abnormally so, even with only one occupant.

He slowly set down the bag of carrots he had been holding and stepped out of the kitchen, into the darkened hall.

"Mei?" He called out, anxiety building in his stomach.

She wouldn't leave. Not without saying goodbye.

Would she?

Sasuke knocked on the door to the guest room before opening it.

Empty.

His heart began racing, beating erratically against his chest as he threw open the rest of the doors in Itachi's apartment.

All of them were empty.

"Goddammit." He ran a frustrated hand through his hair before turning, preparing to exit the vacant room when a voice sounded out from the doorway.

"Sasuke?"

Mei stood in the hall, staring at him with a concerned look on her face. In her hands, she held a fountain pop from the gas station down the street. The Uchiha released a breath of air, exhaling in relief as he rushed forward.

Mei widened her eyes as the ravenette enveloped her in his arms, pressing her into his chest. Sasuke buried his face in her messy tresses.

"I thought you'd left," he breathed, squeezing her as though assuring himself she was really there. Mei's arms hung limply at her sides, the drink dangling dangerously between her fingertips.

Never, in her years of existence, had anyone cared whether she had left or not. No one had ever cared whether she came back, either.

And here was this boy that she had hardly known, one she had disliked upon first meeting him – and he was worried over losing her?

The idea left a strange feeling in her stomach, and a knot formed in her throat.

She hated feeling vulnerable, yet Sasuke triggered something within her that made her feel weak in the knees and fluttery in the chest. It terrified her, yet comforted her all the same.

So, with watery eyes and a shaky voice, she whispered a small, "I'm sorry," before dropping her drink and wrapping her arms around him, pulling herself against him and burying her head in his chest.

It was the first time she could remember feeling safe in the close presence of another human being.

October thirteenth.

The day that things would permanently change for Mei Amano, the girl who had been rejected by the only family that she had ever known. The girl who had grown up far too quickly, and had spent most of her years on this earth by herself, fighting her battles singlehandedly without ever experiencing any form of kindness until she had met a certain stranger on a train.

And above all, the girl who Sasuke had somehow, by an interesting twist of fate, fallen in love with in the short amount of time he had known her.

He shifted the box he held to one hand, using the other to knock on the apartment door. A moment passed before he heard the soft 'clicking' of the locks, and Mei opened it.

"It's official," she beamed, her eyes glittering with an excitement he didn't know she was capable of. She seemed weightless, buoyant...happy. The sight of her in such a joyful state took his breath away, and he found himself feeling just as elated.

The two of them walked into the kitchen-area and he set the box on the table.

"What's that?" Mei inquired, looking at the box curiously. Sasuke smirked at her.

"It's your birthday, isn't it?" He lifted the top half of the box to reveal a small, white-frosted cake, decorated with purple and blue flowers. Across the top, her name was written in an icy blue frosting, along with the words 'Happy 18th Birthday!'.

Mei stared at it with wide eyes, and she suddenly looked as though she were about to cry.

Sasuke laughed nervously. "Don't tell me you've never had a birthday cake before." But the look on her face told him otherwise, and he cleared his throat awkwardly. Mei, however, gave him a genuinely pleased smile.

"Thank you, Sasuke," she said earnestly, looking at him with a tenderness she had never shown anyone. Sasuke flushed.

"It's just a cake," he mumbled, looking away from her. But her cool fingers gripped his chin and brought his face back towards her.

"No," she said with a warm smile. This was such a change from the cold, hardened girl he had come to know over the past few weeks, and yet he loved her all the same. His dark eyes locked with her bright green ones, and he was suddenly very aware of their close proximity. Her hand lingered on his jaw, holding his gaze. "Thank you for everything," Mei continued. "I can't begin to explain how grateful I am to have met you, even though I've been nothing but a royal pain in your ass. I don't know how I will ever repay you for all that you've done for me."

Sasuke wanted to tell her that meeting her in itself was enough payment to last him a lifetime. That he had never met anyone quite like her in his brief time on earth, nor did he think he ever would meet someone like her again. He wanted to tell her that the only pain she brought him, was the pain he had wanted to share with her that she felt she had to carry on her own. All of these things that he wanted to tell her, and yet he feared he would never be able to put them into words.

Instead, he reached a hand out and brushed a stray lock of hair behind her ear.

"All I want is for you to promise me one thing," he murmured quietly, leaning down to press his forehead against hers. He ignored the nervousness swelling in his chest as he inhaled her soft scent of vanilla. And contrary to what he had expected, Mei didn't pull away from him. Rather, she found herself leaning into him.

"Anything," she whispered back.

"Please," Sasuke began, his hands cradling her face as he stared intensely into her eyes. "Please, don't disappear again."

Those words rang out, entering through her ears yet penetrating her soul with such a depth that it was almost tangible.

He wanted her to stay.

Something that no one had ever wanted of her. But who was to say that he wouldn't leave her? The idea struck a nerve of anxiety, which rippled throughout her entire being, and she almost pulled away from him. But as she looked into his endless, obsidian eyes, she realized that they reflected nothing but warmth and honesty. She spoke before she even realized it.

"I promise," she said softly, deciding suddenly that she truly meant it – that she wanted nothing more than to stay by his side for as long as he would let her. And judging from the look that Sasuke gave her, one of pure happiness and relief, she was assured that she had made the right choice.

With nothing left to say, Mei found herself leaning up to capture his lips in a heated kiss, conveying all of the emotions that were surging through her body, with which he returned fervently. He pulled her into him, caging her small body within the confines of his arms – and she had let him.

Because for once, in her eighteen years of life, she felt safe; loved.

And she was going to stay.

End