Mirror

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto

Chapter Four

Karin scowled at the three girls who just drove away from the mall. The brunette beside her shook at the threatening sound that had erupted from the red-head. Karin was really scary sometimes.

"Ami!" barked Karin.

"Y-yes?"

"I have a plan." A loud chuckle sounded in the black Toyota that the girls occupied. The red-head reversed out from under the tree they were 'observing' from and continued in the direction of her house.

"That Haruno bitch will not get the better of me…" she paused to adjust the strap falling down her exposed shoulder. The tank top really was too small for her. "She may look good in those dresses, but she still hasn't chosen one yet. If we play our cards right, I can still get Sasuke-sama before she does…besides, those friends of hers aren't that good at convincing her to buy a dress…"

Ami nodded beside her boss, but in her mind, she heard a little voice telling her to stop Karin before things got out of hand—her schemes usually ended up bad anyway. But a shrill laugh drowned out the voice and her heart told her to trust her 'friend'.

Ino and Hinata watched as Sakura walked to her front door. They waved when she turned around to say goodbye.

"Don't worry Forehead, we'll find the perfect outfit for you by next week! I'll call Ten Ten and we can go shopping again on Tuesday!"

"Bye Sakura-chan…" Hinata called out softly.

When the car finally left, Sakura turned the key in the door and stepped in.

"I'm home!"

Without waiting for a reply, she walked upstairs to her room, ready for a long shower to wash the argument going on inside her, out of her system.

You mean the argument where you denied you had any feelings for Sasuke?

"Yes, that argument—and I do not like him—nor am I denying it!"

"…Sakura? Are you okay? Denying what?"

She whirled around to find her dad in the doorway. Her was holding a cup of hot chocolate, confused at her ranting.

"N-nothing, Dad…I think I'm going to take a shower…"

"Yes…you go do that Sweetie."

The blonde tapped her foot on the soft grass on the front lawn of the Hyuuga estate. Hinata sat on the ground, looking up at her friend expectantly. Suddenly-

"This is so annoying!" Ino began what was to be a long speech. "This is her first time looking for something so important, and our first mission was a fail!

"B-but Ino-chan…if we just give h-h-her some time…m-maybe she w-will find her dress…"

"But that's the whole point! She doesn't have that much time! She needs a date too! And she won't even consider Sasuke!"

Hinata stood up and faced the loud teen.

"It's her choice…I think if we help, she'll come around…I can ask Neji to give Sasuke-sama a little push too…?"

"Good idea! I can work on the dress…and you and Ten Ten can convince the boys to convince Sasuke! Yes…and here I was beginning to lose hope…cuz seriously, sometimes, I wonder if it's even possible to make Sakura pretty…I mean, not to be harsh, but she is a tomboy…even her hair needs work now that I think of it…we should just give up…"

Hinata stared at her. Ino stared right back. Then-

"But what kind of a friend would do that to Forehead? C'mon, I think we need to call Ten Ten right now and tell her our job! Mission: To show Sasuke—and everyone else, how beautiful Sakura really is!"

Together, the teens got off the lawn and sprinted toward the front door of the heiress's room.

None of them noticed the two figures lurking in the bushes behind the front lawn.

Sakura settled into her bed and turned on the lamp on her bedside table. She picked up her book and flipped to the page which she marked last night.

Reading always calmed her down…but not this time. The green-eyed teen tried to focus on the short paragraph in front of her, but the screaming inside her head hadn't stopped yet. The girl shook her head and the shouts faltered…then started again, this time, louder.

You listen here missy! You and I both know you like him—hell—you probably think about him every time a love movie comes on! C'mon Haruno! Give him a chance, give him a sign! Just cuz you got your heart smashed once? C'mon—you hang out with him all the time, he even hi-fived you once or twice, the Uchiha probably thinks you're not interested in him at all—that's why he hasn't made a move yet!

"…But I'm not interested in him at all!" Sakura fought back.

Not interested my ass! Ino is right—let your friends help you! Soon, Sasuke will regret what he threw away all those years ago, and then—

"Shut up!" Sakura slammed her book shut and turned off the lamp. The voice whimpered and died away. Sakura pulled her cover over her head and shut her eyes tightly. Her head was still filled with echoes about forgiveness and making a move, until finally, sleep took over.

…She was running, running as fast as she could. Towards the figure that stood alone in the middle of the hallway. It turned to her and glared.

She gasped at the lean man, dark eyes burning through her and a thin line that was, infact, his mouth. Suddenly, he was right in front of her and she couldn't stop running until—

BAM! He caught her around the waist and she realised his hard expression had changed. Instead, he looked concerned and worried. He held her gaze…his face coming closer and closer…

"Are you alright Sakura…?"

The voice sounded o close she could feel his soft breath fluttering over her nose. Slowly, but surely, she nodded.

"Good."

Then he kissed her. At that moment, Sakura felt all the butterflies in her stomach explode. One by one, each emitting a soft burst of fire before fading away. And then she was kissing him back. The stood like that for what seemed minutes, each reluctant to let go and take a breath.

Sakura broke the contact first. She looked up at him and saw something so stunning, so amazing, that the view left her almost breathless again. Sasuke was smiling. Not just a boring, meaningless smile, but one filled with love.

"Sakura, I love-"

"Sweetie!" sang Mrs. Haruno. "Time to get up!"

Sakura shot into an upright position, breathless and trembling. Sweat flooded her face and the teen touched her fingers to her lips. They still burned.

"M-mum? It's a Saturday! Why are you calling me up so early?"

Her mother gave her a disapproving look. She walked over to Sakura and pushed the messy pink hair behind her ear.

"Sweetie…it's already noon. I let you sleep in because you didn't look too well last night. But if you're going to be so snappy, I'll know better next time. Now get up! You still have chores to do!"

The pinkette groaned and pulled her pillow over her face. Her mother rolled her eyes and stalked out of the room.

What she didn't know was that Sakura wasn't complaining about the chores. Instead, it was—

"Shit! I can't believe I had a dream about him…" after more swearing, she came to a conclusion. "…I have another crush on Sasuke Uchiha…shit!"

Sakura grudgingly stumbled out of her bed and literally crawled into the bathroom. It was time to take another shower. But not before the annoying voice returned.

Haha—told you, told you! Now, we need to think of a way to show that piece of hotness—

"Pardon?"

-You heard me—what we really think of him…okay Sak, step one…

The voice was soon overpowered by the loud cascading water that Sakura hoped, would pound the butterflies out of her body, down the drain, and never, ever returned.